CARSON CITY, Nev. — Legal marijuana sales in Nevada set another monthly record in May, fresh on the heels of the previous month's record.
The Nevada Department of Taxation reported on July 26 the $7.11 million in tax revenue from pot sales for medical and recreational use in May topped the previous monthly high of $7.09 million in March. Tax collections for the first 11 months of the fiscal year now total $62.6 million, according to the Associated Press. That's 25 percent more than was projected for the entire fiscal year — and June collections are still outstanding.Pot tax revenue for the entire fiscal 2018 was projected to be $50.32 million.
Overall taxable sales have reached $481.4 million and should easily surpass $500 million by the end of June. More than $384 million of that is from recreational sales.
Based on sales to date, Tax Director Bill Anderson says all indications are the trend will continue in June and into the next fiscal year.
Nevada's Wholesale Marijuana Tax rate is 15 percent on revenues generated by cultivators along with fees, penalties and assessments.
After paying costs of enforcing and collecting the tax, $5 million of that revenue goes to local governments and the rest to the state's K-12 education budget.
