Many Alaska cannabis industry leaders say the way the state taxes them is broken, leading to lower revenue for the state and increased participation in the black market.
Since Alaskans voted to legalize recreational cannabis in 2015, the state has imposed an excise tax on each ounce growers sell to retailers and manufacturers. Ultimately, that gets passed on to consumers.
Many in the industry say the system needs reform, and one Anchorage lawmaker has proposed legislation to do that. But with the state facing many other issues and industry leaders divided on the path forward, the bill got little movement in the last legislative session…