In the last election, Oregon legalized marijuana for recreational use, following the lead of Colorado and the adjacent state of Washington, who voted in legal recreational weed in 2012.
The cities of Portland, Oregon and Vancouver, Washington are immediately adjacent to one another - and it will be interesting to see how the differences in the laws as implemented will shape the market for legal weed.
Marijuana from legal retail outlets is currently offered for as high as $42 per *gram*, making legal weed nearly as expensive as illicit cocaine. Washington mandates a three-tier distribution structure, with a 25% tax at each tier, and prohibits personal growing. I can tell you that the black market in weed continues to thrive, as the street price for weed is a quarter or less of what the state-blessed stuff sells for.
Oregon's law implements a single excise tax-by-weight or -unit (for immature plants), which I understand to be $35 per ounce of buds, $10/oz for leaf, or $5 per immature plant.
The tax structure that Oregon has implemented vs Washington's I see having several effects: there's going to be a tough time for legal Washington retailers in localities adjacent to the Oregon border, and a fair amount of marijuana sold legally in Oregon is going to be (illegally) traveling north to Washington, and the tax revenue expected by the state of WA is going to not meet projections - as Oregon residents no longer have any reason to buy legal weed in Washington.
How will the states react? How should they?
The cities of Portland, Oregon and Vancouver, Washington are immediately adjacent to one another - and it will be interesting to see how the differences in the laws as implemented will shape the market for legal weed.
Marijuana from legal retail outlets is currently offered for as high as $42 per *gram*, making legal weed nearly as expensive as illicit cocaine. Washington mandates a three-tier distribution structure, with a 25% tax at each tier, and prohibits personal growing. I can tell you that the black market in weed continues to thrive, as the street price for weed is a quarter or less of what the state-blessed stuff sells for.
Oregon's law implements a single excise tax-by-weight or -unit (for immature plants), which I understand to be $35 per ounce of buds, $10/oz for leaf, or $5 per immature plant.
The tax structure that Oregon has implemented vs Washington's I see having several effects: there's going to be a tough time for legal Washington retailers in localities adjacent to the Oregon border, and a fair amount of marijuana sold legally in Oregon is going to be (illegally) traveling north to Washington, and the tax revenue expected by the state of WA is going to not meet projections - as Oregon residents no longer have any reason to buy legal weed in Washington.
How will the states react? How should they?
