CA State Officials: Pot Tax Would Rake in $1.4B

[The Straight Story]

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) -- California tax officials have found that a state bill to tax and regulate marijuana like alcohol would generate nearly $1.4 billion in revenue.

A State Board of Equalization report released Wednesday estimates marijuana retail sales would bring $990 million from a $50-per-ounce fee and $392 million in sales taxes.

The bill introduced by San Francisco Democratic Assemblyman Tom Ammiano in February would allow adults to legally possess, grow and sell marijuana.

Ammiano has promoted the bill as a way to help bridge the state's $26.3 billion budget shortfall.

The state could not begin collecting taxes under the bill, as written, until the federal government legalizes marijuana.

http://www.news10.net/news/local/story.aspx?storyid=63305&catid=2

[EFerrari]

1. Go, Tom!

lol

[alice silas]

2. California spends more now on alcohol problems than it takes in in tax.

Why would taking in 1.4 billion then turning around and spending hundreds of millions while seeing employers see hundreds of millions of dollars in lost productivity make a bit of sense?

So you raise the price of pot for the tax and what stops the criminals from just moving in like they have with cigarettes?

[The Straight Story]

4. You are forgetting about the tax on snacks and such

Those munchies will more than make up for it all :)

[lob1]

6. You won't see people not going to work because of pot.

What you WILL see is a big savings because people won't be sent to prison for smoking it. That alone will save the state many millions of dollars, aside from the taxes.

[alice silas]

7. Bullcrap. I have two buddies that never stopped smoking dope since college.

and these two buddies are the bigges waste of flesh America has. They do/accomplish NOTHING.

[lob1]

9. Then you hang with the wrong people.

I've smoked pot for 40 years and never missed a day of work because of it. I am not a waste of flesh. I was very successful at my job, make a lot of money and retired. The only time I ever missed work was when I had a hangover from booze. You don't get a hangover with grass.

[alice silas]

11. "never missed a day of work because of it" = it was all that other stuff that made me miss work. NT

[lob1]

13. Now you're just being stupid.

I'll say it again. I never missed work because of smoking grass. I missed work a few times when I drank too much. It's really simple sentences.

[anigbrowl]

22. If we could tax grass we'd be able to afford higher quality trolls...

[lob1]

25. Ha! You made me laugh.

[libertypirate]

12. Bullcrap back to you...

I know of more wasted flesh to booze than any thing.

I know of more dysfunctional behavior due to alcohol then due to super sticky green.

I bet your buddies love the drink too.

I am sure that the ignorant mind just wanders into ignoring reality.

[ohheckyeah]

16. How do you know they wouldn't have been

wastes of flesh even if they didn't smoke pot? You don't.

[anigbrowl]

21. Well why are you still friends with them then?

'I know two lazy people who smoke lots of pot' isn't a very convincing argument. I know a lot of enterprising and hard working people who like smoking pot as well, just as I know some lazy people who never touch drugs. Look up the concept of 'sample size' in statistics.

[Demobrat]

14. Legalizing pot will not create more pot smokers.

Pot smokers know where to get pot, and if they don't they can always grow it themselves. All it will do is divert a cut of the billions spent on it every year to the govt to waste. Oh, and free up cops and courts, and prison beds.

[anigbrowl]

18. Source that assertion, please

I'm personally fine with you playing devil's advocate or outright trolling here, but at least make the effort to back up your arguments.

It seems to have escaped your attention that since pot is illegal now there are already criminals involved, whereas if if its growth and distribution are decriminalised or legalised then they (criminals) no longer have a comparative advantage from their willingness to engage in extralegal activities. Per market theory, we can expect this to result in a significant drop in wholesale prices.

Anyway, regarding your other question:

Why would taking in 1.4 billion then turning around and spending hundreds of millions while seeing employers see hundreds of millions of dollars in lost productivity make a bit of sense?

Up to the point where spending and lost productivity exceed $700 million each, it would still make economic sense. Not that I buy your hypotheses about either of these outcomes, mind.

[xchrom]

3. 1.4 bil? -- be a lot more than that. nt

[The Straight Story]

5. Maybe that is per day

:rofl:

[anigbrowl]

19. No. You're confusing the size of the market with the size of the taxable revenue.

[Cronus Protagonist]

8. We should not be taxing medication

Sorry, but that's unethical.

[The Straight Story]

10. Well let's hope it is covered under health care reform and is free

;)

[anigbrowl]

20. We're not talking about it in purely medicinal terms

medical marijuana only accounts for about 10% of consumption and I bet part of that is fraudulent. I'm happy to pay tax as a recreational user.

[Ishoutandscream2]

15. California usually leads the way

I hope to one day enjoy the wonderful herb legally.

[jwirr]

17. And that does not seem to include the savings in other areas. nt

[steelmania75]

23. LEGALIZE IT FOR PETE'S SAKE!!!!!

[Imagevision]

24. Realy! let's get on with it already!!!!