Massachusetts Marijuana Tax Revenue Now Exceeds Alcohol By Millions

Massachusetts is officially collecting more tax revenue from marijuana than alcohol, state data shows.

As of December 2021, the state took in $51.3 million from alcohol taxes and $74.2 million from cannabis at the halfway point of the fiscal year.

Overall, Massachusetts has seen $2.54 billion in adult-use marijuana purchases since the market came online in November 2018. Regulators first reported thatĀ the state achieved the $2 billion sales milestoneĀ in September.

The news about cannabis overtaking alcohol in terms of tax revenue, which WCVB-TV firstĀ reported, is a welcome development for advocates who have been arguing that the plant is less harmful than liquor and could be used as a substitute.

Illinois also sawĀ cannabis taxes beat out booze for the first timeĀ last year, with the state collecting about $100 million more from adult-use marijuana than alcohol during 2021.

States that have legalized marijuana have collectivelyĀ garnered more than $10 billion in cannabis tax revenueĀ since the first licensed sales started in 2014, according to a report released by the Marijuana Policy Project (MPP) earlier this month.

And in those adult-use states, regulators are doing what they can to ensure that the tax dollars are effectively invested.

For example, Illinois is dedicating portions of tax revenue to mental health services, as well as local organizations ā€œdeveloping programs that benefit disadvantaged communities.ā€ In July, state officials put $3.5 million inĀ cannabis-generated funds toward efforts to reduce violenceĀ through street intervention programs.

California officials announced in June that they wereĀ awarding about $29 million in grantsĀ funded by marijuana tax revenue to 58 nonprofit organizations, with the intent of righting the wrongs of the war on drugs. The state collected aboutĀ $817 million in adult-use marijuana tax revenueĀ during the 2020-2021 fiscal year, state officials estimated last summer. That’s 55 percent more cannabis earnings for state coffers than was generated in the prior fiscal year.

Nearly $500 million of cannabis tax revenue in Colorado has supported the state’s public school system. That state brought inĀ a record $423 million in marijuana tax dollarsĀ last year.

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