February marijuana tax revenue up but still trails December

Twenty marijuana growers paid $128,000 to the state in February, the Alaska Department of Revenue's Tax Division wrote in a release Friday.

That's a small increase from the month before but still trailing December, when $145,500 in revenue was paid in taxes.

In February, growers sold 135 pounds of marijuana bud and 85 pounds of other parts of the plant, like leaves and stems, called "trim," that is used to make other cannabis products like concentrates and edibles.

Under Alaska law, growers pay the state's tax. Bud is taxed at $50 per ounce and other parts of the plant, like the stems and leaves, are taxed at $15 per ounce.

Of those growers, six are in Fairbanks, three are on the Kenai Peninsula, two are in Anchorage and two are in Soldotna. Juneau, Kasilof, Sitka, Seward, Sterling, Valdez and Wasilla each had one grower that paid tax.

Since sales began in October, the state has received $472,700 in marijuana excise tax revenue. March's tax revenue won't be paid until the end of April.

Alaska's marijuana revenue for this fiscal year has so far been far below initial expectations; the Tax Division said last month that regulatory hurdles and supply shortages caused them to cut their estimates by more than half, to $5 million for fiscal year 2017.

In January, commercial marijuana sales lagged and revenue dipped to $107,500 as many shops shut down temporarily or reduced their hours.

Half of the tax revenue will go to the state's general fund. The other half has been appropriated to programs aimed at reducing the numbers of repeat criminal offenders.