One million pounds of marijuana expected to be sold in California this year

January 1, 2018 marked the legalization of recreational marijuana in California - a state that has always been closely associated with the consumption of cannabis. Despite getting off to a slow start during its first two weeks due to permit issues and a variety of other legal blockades, the buzz of excitement surrounding the rise of recreational weed businesses in California continues to grow.

According to The Hill, the Department of Finance has estimated that California will sell over 1 million pounds of marijuana between July 1 2018 and June 30 2019 - the first full budget year of legalization.

In total, this would amount to “$3.4 billion in recreational retail sales in the first full year, and $643 million in tax revenue for the state.”

On its own, California is one of the world’s largest economies and while this influx of cash may appear as a drop in the bucket compared to the state's annual GDP, the millions made in tax revenue from the sale of marijuana and other cannabis related products may save countless local programs all over the state.