California took in over $1 billion in cannabis tax revenue in 2024, with the fourth quarter revenue numbers coming in on Wednesday.
The big picture: The California Department of Tax and Fee Administration reported fourth quarter returns of $219 million.
- That includes $127.8 million in cannabis excise tax and $91.2 million in sales tax.
- The fourth quarter of 2024 ultimately had the lowest cannabis tax revenue since the first quarter of 2020. Every other quarter since then reported at least $249 million in revenue.
What we’re watching: The low revenue total for the fourth quarter of 2024 was driven in part by the destructive wildfires in the Los Angeles area.
- As part of a relief package, California Gov. Gavin Newsom ordered a three-month return filing and payment extension for taxpayers in Los Angeles County, which applies to the cannabis tax.
- Some tax revenue from the fourth quarter of 2024 will not be reported until the extended deadline comes on April 30.
Zoom out: California’s total revenue since it started collecting the cannabis tax in 2018 is now over $6.7 billion.
- The total is made up of $3.5 billion in the excise tax, $2.7 billion in the sales tax, and $500 million in the cultivation tax, which was eliminated in 2022.
