Medical cannabis-derived tax revenues in Oklahoma increased 56% from 2019 to 2020 to more than $66 million, News on 6 reports. Comparatively, in 2020, the state’s tax on cigarettes brought in $71 million.
Oklahoma’s medical cannabis program is considered one of the most liberal in the U.S.
According to Oklahoma Tax Commission data outlined by Marijuana Business Daily, medical cannabis retailers in the state reported more than $831 million in total revenue in 2020. In 2019, medical cannabis revenues in the state topped $345 million.
Currently, there are 129,085 medical cannabis patients in the state along with 818 caregivers, according to Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Authority data. The state has also licensed 3,026 cultivators and 1,479 dispensaries.
Lawmakers are considering a bill that would cap the number of dispensaries for two years and also requiring commercial licenses to be “active,” which is defined in the bill as having at least $5,000 in sales with producers maintaining at least 50 plants monthly. Further restrictions in the bill would lower the number of commercial licenses in the state from 10,000 to 8,000, which would set caps at 5,000 grower licenses, 2,000 dispensary permits, and 1,000 processor licenses.
Last month, Republican Sen. Jim Inhofe requested $4 million in federal funds to combat diversion of cannabis from the state after the Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics in April seized cannabis grown illegally by one of the companies licensed under the state’s medical cannabis program.
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