Nevada marijuana tax revenue ahead of projections

The head of Nevada’s Taxation Department says marijuana tax collections are running ahead of projections used to build the state budget.

Bill Anderson said after two-thirds of the fiscal year, pot has generated $41.88 million in tax revenue. He said that’s about 83 percent of what marijuana was expected to bring the state in taxes for the entire year.

He said that’s the total from a mix of both medical and adult-use sales and the revenue stream continues to grow. In February, the most recent month for which collections were available, the taxes generated $5.95 million, the largest monthly total so far.

“The trend we are seeing is that the wholesale marijuana tax is tracking slightly above projections and is showing steady growth each month,” he said. “The retail marijuana tax has come in significantly above projections each month.”

He said the wholesale tax, which is paid by cultivators for both medical and recreational use, brought in $2.4 million.

“The overall revenue picture is strong and, if it continues the path it is currently on, we can expect to see end-of-year revenue totals that substantially exceed expectations,” Anderson said.

According to taxation officials, total taxable sales of adult use marijuana are now at $263.7 million. Total combined taxable sales for medical, adult use and marijuana related goods for the first eight months of the fiscal year are at $336.43 million.

In addition, the state has levied fees, assessments and penalties related to pot totaling $9.53 million.

Anderson said current projections for the 15 percent wholesale tax are $23.84 million. After sending some cash to taxation for the cost of running the program and $5 million to local governments, the rest goes into the K-12 education budget.

The 10 percent retail tax is expected to generate $26.48 million for this fiscal year. That money goes into the state Rainy Day Fund.