Washington Marijuana Revenues, And Health

Washington state collected a total of $367.4 million in legal marijuana income and license fees in fiscal year 2018, all but $5.4 million of it from the state’s marijuana excise, or sales tax. The data are in the Liquor and Cannabis Control Board’s FY 2018 Annual Report (p. 15).

The report also shows that the marijuana revenues were $157 million more than that of liquor, and that the marijuana excise tax income to the state for fiscal 2018 of $367.4 million grew by almost $50 million from the prior year.

Revenues collected by the Liquor and Cannabis Board from legal cannabis taxes, license fees, and penalties are distributed as follow, according to the report:

• General Fund – $198.9 million
• Basic Health – $117.4 million
• Cities, Counties – $15.0 million
• Education, Prevention – $36.2 million
• Research – $1.1 million
• Other – $20.8 million

According to the state’s marijuana data dashboard, the state collected $120 million in marijuana excise taxes in fiscal 2018, which ended June 30, 2019.

RCW 69.50.540 sets the template for allocations of state spending funded through marijuana sales taxes and licensing fees.

Nearly half of all marijuana revenues fiscal 2015, 2016, 2017, and 2018 went to the Basic Health Plan Trust Account.

That account is described by the Office of Financial Management as providing “necessary basic health care services to working persons and others who lack coverage, at a cost…that does not create a barrier to…utilization …”