The media often presents the cannabis in either a very positive or negative light. However, the cannabis industry is actually a very organized and lucrative business that generates impressive tax profits for states across the country.
Attitudes are Finally Changing
When cannabis first came to the public’s attention in the 1950’s, hysterical critics produced inflammatory documentaries that portrayed cannabis as a cocaine like drug that would destroy the very fabric of society. However, research shows that the public’s attitude about cannabis is finally changing. This is attributed to the attitudes of the younger generation and cutting edge scientific research.
Scientific Research
One of the biggest driving factors is that scientific research can finally be performed on cannabis. Due to the fact that the federal government considers cannabis to be illegal, there historically hasn’t been any scientific research performed. Today, studies are showing that alcohol can actually be more harmful than cannabis. These studies are also highlighting the harmful side effects of excessive cannabis consumption.
The Legal Cannabis Industry is Growing Fast
According to a recent article in the Huffington Post, the legal cannabis industry is the fastest growing sectors in the United States. In fact, it is poised to soon become larger than the widespread organic food industry. Researchers have found that the legal cannabis market grew over 70 percent in 2014. Sales were 1.5 billion in 2013, but went up to 2.7 billion in 2014. The report also projects a strong growth of over 30 percent in 2015 for legal cannabis. As more and more states legalize cannabis, sales and consumption trends will push the industry to grow even more.
The Cannabis Industry is Moving toward Private Banking
Old-fashioned banks naturally avoid doing business with cannabis-based companies because they fear federal prosecution. Certain states may have legalized cannabis, but it is still illegal under federal law. Therefore, banks continually refuse to provide loans and close cannabis-based business accounts. Because of this unfair treatment, a group of innovative financiers is seeking to establish a bank designed to only serve the cannabis industry. However, the Federal Reserve has continually buffered any attempts to start a cannabis-based bank because if this happens, they would come under fire from state and federal agencies and branches.
Cannabis Sales Taxes May be Too High
Colorado was the first state to officially legalize cannabis sales for private consumption. However, after years of legal cannabis sales, the state of Colorado is amassing enough cannabis-based sales taxes to actually be able to give back the revenue excess to its citizens. This occurred because Colorado lawmakers under estimated the projected revenue of their 30 percent marijuana tax rate. As a result, the state has actually earned an extra 60 million dollars that they weren’t expecting. Consequently, their taxpayer’s Bill of Rights requires that this excess revenue be refunded back to citizens. Therefore, other states that have followed Colorado’s legal cannabis system are carefully choosing their marijuana tax rate in order to avoid similar problems.
In the end, the cannabis industry is often misconstrued in the media and the public’s eye. However, the cannabis industry is so profitable that states are enjoying extra revenue for other important purposes.