Though the cannabis industry is one of America’s most lucrative new industries — with estimates that it will reach approximately $58 billion in sales by 2028 — the markets in several recreational states are suffering severe financial harm. In states like Oregon, the problems have gotten so out of hand that businesses are even pulling out of the state. And these problems are far from over.
California is probably the best example of such a problematic state, as I wrote last week. Last year, reports from the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration showed that the California cannabis industry’s total sales went down by a total of over eight percent from 2021 to 2022, which means approximately $400 million less of annual sales in a market as gargantuan as California’s — at least that was the case with the legal market, which California is doing little to protect. And according to recent sales figures for 2023, it looks like the total financial loss was even more substantial. Whereas nearly $5.4 billion in total sales occurred in 2022, a full $250 million less in overall sales when compared to the already troubled year of 2022. Unfortunately though, California’s problems are
