COLORADO, USA — Early in the pandemic, people in Colorado bought more marijuana than they ever had before. Sales in 2020 peaked in July at more than $226 million.
But recently, sales have slowed down and in May, total marijuana sales were around $148 million.
"This is an industry at its breaking point," said Truman Bradley, the executive director of the Marijuana Industry Group (MIG).
Bradley said not only are businesses struggling and being forced to lay off employees, but state and local budgets could see an impact as well.
"A drop in sales in 13 months is not a trend, it's a reality," said Bradley. "This is where we're at now, and for [Denver] that means between a 20 and 25% cut to important services such as affordable housing and homelessness prevention."
In Denver, marijuana sales tax revenue accounts for about 5% of the city's general fund. Most of it goes toward enforcement, regulation and youth education.
Denver's recent pot sales are similar to the states with a 27% decline in retail sales this May compared to May of last year.
"Revenue does impact future budgets, there's no doubt about that," said Eric Escudero, the director of communications for Denver's Department of Excise and Licenses. "But I think you got to be careful about making the observation for something that's happening in the moment and assuming that that will be the case a year or two years from now."
Escudero said he isn't ready to panic. He even expected lower sales after they skyrocketed in the beginning of the pandemic.
"We have to be nimble we have to be flexible," said Escudero. "What those budgets may look like in the future depending on sales, you know we don't know."
The Marijuana Industry Group said they are still seeing the same amount of people come into stores to buy cannabis, but they're just not buying as much as they used to.
There's a potential that a ballot initiative will ask Denver voters to raise taxes on pot by 4.5% to fund out of school learning programs, bringing Denver's tax rate on marijuana above 30%. MIG worries that if passed, cannabis sales could decrease even further.
SUGGESTED VIDEOS: Full Episodes of Next with Kyle Clark