Montana’s cannabis industry is closing in on a billion dollars in sales three years since recreational use became legal.
Customers spent just under $300 million on marijuana products from January through this November. That’s the latest month data is available through the Montana Cannabis Control Division.
That brings total sales to over $920 million since January 2022 — the month recreational sales began. With around $25 million in average monthly sales, that positions the industry to cross the billion dollar threshold in the first quarter of next year.
All that business has brought in over $150 million in new tax revenue. That money is divided up between state-run addiction treatment programs, habitat conservation funds, and crime control efforts. Local governments can add their own tax on top of the state’s.
Lawmakers squabbled with Gov. Greg Gianforte during the 2023 legislative session over a bill that sought to redistribute marijuana tax revenue. The appropriation of those funds could again be a point of focus in the upcoming legislative session.
