Lafayette County, Platte City approve 3% marijuana sales taxes

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YOU KNOW HOW MUCH COLDER WE’RE GOING TO BE FOR YOUR SATURDAY AND YOUR SUNDAY. THAT’S COMING UP. WELL, MARIJUANA IN MISSOURI IS NOW $1 BILLION INDUSTRY, AND THAT BRINGS IN ROUGHLY $100 BILLION IN TAXES. KMBC NINE’S REBECCA GANNON IS TRACKING THOSE DOLLARS. I MEAN, WE’RE JUST BOOMING RIGHT NOW. TAKE CARE OF YOU. LET ME GET MY HEADS OUT HERE. RELIEF RESOURCES IN GRANDVIEW IS ONE OF THE BUSIEST DISPENSARIES IN THE METRO. YOU COULD SAY IT’S BUZZING AND IT’S INDICATIVE OF THE INDUSTRY IN MISSOURI. I REALLY DID EXPECT THIS TO HIT A BILLION IN THE FIRST YEAR, ESPECIALLY AFTER THE FIRST MONTH OF ROLLOUT. WE KIND OF KNEW THAT THAT’S THE PACE THAT WE WERE GOING TOWARDS. SO TO SEE IT ALREADY HAPPEN THIS FAST, IT’S NOT NECESSARILY A SURPRISE FOR US. NOW, FRANKLIN’S PROVIDES PRODUCTS TO MANY DISPENSARIES IN THE STATE, SO IT’S REALLY WEIRD TO THINK THAT MAYBE MISSOURI COULD BE A MECCA FOR WEED. AND, YOU KNOW, DISPENSARIES AND WHATNOT. BUT IT’S STARTING TO PAN OUT TO LOOK THAT WAY. THE MISSOURI CANNABIS TRADE ASSOCIATION ESTIMATES THE STATE’S MADE $100 BILLION IN TAXES AND FEES ON CANNABIS. MORE THAN 40 MILLION OF THOSE HAVE GONE TO THE MISSOURI VETERANS COMMISSION, WHO TOLD KMBC THESE FUNDS ARE HELPING CONTINUE TO SUPPORT THE EXISTING INFRASTRUCTURE OF OUR SEVEN VETERANS HOMES, WHICH INCLUDES THINGS LIKE WI-FI UPGRADES AND DATA ANALYSIS. CANNABIS TAX MONEY ALSO GOES TO THE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND THE ENVIRONMENT AND THE MISSOURI STATE PUBLIC DEFENDER’S OFFICE. AND CITIES ALSO GET A CUT. BUT IT DOES FEEL GOOD AS A COMPANY TO PRODUCE PRODUCT THAT’S CREATING TAX REVENUE, THAT’S BEING WELL ORGANIZED. YOU KNOW, SOMEONE LIKE KANSAS CITY IS USING THAT MONEY TO FIGHT GUN VIOLENCE, TO FIGHT GENERAL VIOLENCE, TO CLEAN UP STREETS. AND, YOU KNOW, THEY HAVE A REAL PLAN FOR WHAT THEY’RE DOING WITH IT. RECREATIONAL MARIJUANA IS TAXED AT A HIGHER RATE THAN MEDICINAL. AND IT DEPENDS ON WHAT MUNICIPALITY YOU’RE IN. HERE IN GRANDVIEW, IT’S AT 21%. AND THAT DOES NOT SEEM TO BE SLOWING DOWN BUSINESS IN GRANDVIEW. REBECCA GANNON KMBC NINE NEWS. THE CITY AND STATE TAXES ARE STACKED ON MARIJUANA PURCHASES. THERE IS A LAWSUIT FROM THE CANNABIS INDUSTRY TO CHALLENGE THAT, SAYING IT IS UNCONSTITUTIONAL. WHILE THE MISSOURI CANNABIS TRADE ASSOCIATION SAYS THOSE EXTRA TAXES COST MISSOURIANS $3 BILLION A MONTH. THE AMENDMENT ALSO ALLOWED LOW LEVEL MARIJUANA CONVICTIONS TO BE EXPUNGED. SO FAR, MORE THAN 100,000 MI

“]] Missouri voters approved local marijuana sales tax measures Tuesday in both Lafayette County and Platte City.  Read More  

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