Pot Sales Lead To High Revenue For Denver

DENVER, CO — Marijuana-related crime is dropping and marijuana tax revenue is up, according to Denver's 2018 Annual Marijuana Report. The report covers January 2017 to January 2018.

“We took on the daunting challenge of becoming the first major city in America to manage legalized recreational marijuana and we are having success," Denver Mayor Michael Hancock said.

Hancock credits the strong cooperation between government agencies in making legalized pot safe and profitable. The police department, fire department, public health and several others all work together to keep everything in order.

Recreational pot sales jumped 29 percent from 2016 to 2017. Alongside the additional 6.55 percent tax on marijuana, these sales make for tons of revenue. Denver alone made nearly $45 million in 2017 from pot sales, recreational and medical.

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Here are some of the stats from the 2018 Annual Marijuana Report:

• Retail marijuana sales jumped 29% in Denver from 2016 to 2017, while medical sales dropped 3%.
• There is a projected increase of 8% in marijuana tax and licensing revenue in 2018 compared to 2017. Revenue in 2017 jumped 20% compared to 2016 totals.
• Marijuana sales tax revenue in Denver constituted an estimated 3.4% of Denver’s general fund revenue in 2017 compared to 3.02% in 2016.
• In 2018, $12.4 million from marijuana-related revenue was appropriated to add investments for deferred maintenance, affordable housing and opioid intervention in Denver.
• Marijuana related crime in 2017 accounted for less than 1 percent of overall crime in Denver at .30% compared to .42% in 2016.
• Marijuana industry-related crime in 2017 represented less than ½ of 1 percent of overall crime in Denver at .21% compared to .32% in 2016.

While marijuana-related crime is down, it's not completely gone. DEA agents and police raided several homes Thursday morning, breaking up grow ops as a part of a federal trafficking investigation.

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