BUSINESS NEWS MARCH 15, 2018 / 6:48 PM / UPDATED 14 HOURS AGO

California lawmakers propose cut to recreational cannabis taxes

Laila Kearney
2 MIN READ

NEW YORK (Reuters) - California lawmakers on Thursday launched a bipartisan bid to temporarily reduce taxes on the state’s emerging recreational cannabis industry in order to help legally run pot businesses compete financially with black market growers and sellers.

Legislation introduced by assemblymen Tom Lackey, a Republican from Palmdale, and Rob Bonta, an Oakland-based Democrat, comes 2-1/2 months after a law took effect legalizing adult marijuana use in the most populous U.S. state.

“California cannabis businesses are making significant investments as they embrace the regulated marketplace while, at the same time, being undercut by unregulated competitors,” Bonta said in a statement. The bill is aimed at “keeping customers at licensed stores and helping ensure the regulated market survives and thrives,” he said.

The marijuana market in California, which lays claim to the world’s sixth-largest economy, is valued by most experts at several billion dollars annually and is expected to generate at least $1 billion a year in tax revenue.

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