(SitNews) Anchorage, Alaska - Passage of Ballot Measure 2 could generate more than $72.5 million in tax revenue in the first five years of legal marijuana sales, according to a new report from an independent research organization. It could bring in more than $8.5 million in the first year and nearly $24 million per year by 2020.

The study was conducted by the Marijuana Policy Group, a collaborative effort between university researchers and economic research consultants, which does not take a stance on whether marijuana should be legal. The Washington Post reported that the Marijuana Policy Group received no payment for the study and chose to undertake it because the State of Alaska did not perform the research on its own. According to the group, Market Size and Demand for Marijuana in Alaska was prepared for the Voters of Alaska.

Alaska's Ballot measure 2 asks residents to decide whether or not to legalize marijuana use for recreational purposes. Due to Alaskan legislative policy, the state government is not allowed to fund studies related to the fiscal effects that may be caused by approval of Ballot Measure 2.

According to the study, the group estimated that 17.8 metric tons of marijuana flower will be demanded by Alaska state residents in 2016. Of this, 4.0 metric tons would be purchased through recreational retail outlets, if Ballot Measure 2 were approved. State tax revenues, if applied as described at $50 per ounce unit tax, would be equal to $7.1 million dollars tax in the first year. Revenues may be as low as $5.6 million, or as high as $8.6 million.

In a prepared statement Chris Rempert of the Campaign to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol said, “The report confirms that regulating marijuana like alcohol would produce significant new revenue for our state. Generating new revenue is not the only reason to support ending marijuana prohibition, but it is a good reason."

The Campaign to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol is supporting the passage of Ballot Measure 2 which will be decided by Alaska voters on Novermber 4th.

Rempert said. “Passage of Ballot Measure 2 will not only bolster Alaska’s economy, but also enhance public safety. Regulating marijuana would take tens of millions of dollars in marijuana sales out of the underground market where profits benefit criminals who aren’t paying taxes. It would also ensure marijuana is properly tested, packaged, and labeled, and that cultivation and sales are tightly controlled.

“Marijuana sales are going to take place in Alaska regardless of whether Ballot Measure 2 passes. Voters need to decide whether we should continue forcing those sales into the underground market or allow them to be conducted by legitimate, taxpaying businesses," said Rempert.

The Marijuana Policy Group (MPG) was formed in 2014 as a collaborative effort between Colorado university researchers and BBC Research & Consulting in Denver, Colorado. Both entities have offered custom economic, market, financial and policy research and consulting services for over 40 years.

The Marijuana Policy Group states their mission is to apply research methods rooted in economic theory and statistical applications to inform regulatory policy decisions in the rapidly growing legal medical and recreational marijuana markets.

Edited by Mary Kauffman, SitNews

On the Web:

Ballot Measure #2 (13PSUM) - An Act to Tax and Regulate the Production, Sale and Use of Marijuana
http://www.elections.alaska.gov/doc/bml/BM2-13PSUM-ballot-language.pdf

Read the full study MARKET SIZE AND DEMAND FOR MARIJUANA IN ALASKA
Prepared by the Marijuana Policy Group
http://mjpolicygroup.com/Alaska-Demand-and-Taxes-MPG-Publication.pdf

Sources of News: 

The Marijuana Policy Group
http://mjpolicygroup.com/

Campaign to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol
http://www.RegulateMarijuanaInAlaska.org

SitNews ©2014
Stories In The News
Ketchikan, Alaska

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