Nevada’s Recreational Marijuana Sales Soar Past Colorado

The Nevada Department of Taxation released October sales numbers showing that the state sold $38 million worth of marijuana. That garnered the state nearly $20 million in tax revenue. At this point of legalization in Colorado, sales topped $22.56 million – Nevada has surpassed that by $16 million.

Nevada appears to be on target with projections, Forbes reports. Dispensary owners across the state aren’t worried about how California’s recreational market. They don’t think there will be a decline in sales.

Stephanie Klapstein of the Nevada Department of Taxation said, “We are pretty on target with projections, maybe a little over.”

Tourists are heavily fueling Nevada’s adult-use market. New Frontier Data projects that Nevada’s marijuana market will have a value of at least $622 million by 2020.

On-site consumption spaces are the next major topic on the agenda. No other recreationally legal states have a permanent on-site consumption policy in place, although Denver does have a pilot program in place. This is one way for Las Vegas tourists to enjoy their purchases, since they currently have nowhere to legally use their legal marijuana purchases.

Senator Tick Segerblom said, at the marijuana law conference this summer, “We have 40 million tourists in Las Vegas; we’re around the world right now saying, ‘Come to Las Vegas, because you can buy recreational marijuana, or cannabis’. But you also have to say, ‘There is literally no place you can use this as a tourist.’ You can’t use it in your hotel room. You can’t use it on the Strop. You can’t use it at a restaurant. You can’t use it at a concert. But they do.”

The Clark County Commissioners aren’t fully on-board with consumption lounges. One commissioner said, “I don’t see any reason why we have to be first.”

Regardless of places for tourists to use their purchases, the market doesn’t seem to be slowing down at all in Nevada – experts don’t expect sales to slow down either.