The Colorado Department of Revenue released numbers for the sale of medical and recreational marijuana and the results are overwhelmingly positive.
In 2017 alone, revenue generated for both medical and recreational marijuana sales topped the scales at $1.51 billion. Of that, $1.09 billion came from adult-use recreational sales and the rest coming from the sale of medical marijuana, as well as various fees and taxes.
The 2016 fiscal year saw revenues upwards of $1.3 billion which, at that point, was a record amount. Prior to 2016, sales in 2015 were about $996 million, a sharp contrast the record-breaking sales revenue of the most recent fiscal year.
Although the majority of the recreational sales occurred in areas of higher population density, namely in Denver and Arapahoe counties, one of the more rural counties in Colorado, Las Animas, topped the state charts with about $3,100 of recreational marijuana per adult.
Las Animas County is on the New Mexico/Colorado border, making it an easy target for people from multiple states to come to purchase cannabis. It also has an interstate running through it, making the destination even more accessible.
In addition to Las Animas County, researchers and data analysts have found that three of the five counties with the highest recreational revenue per capita are located along the southern border of Colorado.
As it stands this year, the current per capita sales rates are as follows;
- Las Animas County – $3,118
- Costilla County – $1,036
- Montezuma County – $735
All in all, this trend seems to indicate that many people are coming from southern locations, some in other states, to purchase recreational cannabis. Whether or not that will need to be addressed in the future, no one can be certain.
