The marijuana craze in Nevada: The inventory ran out 10 days after a free sale was allowed

In the first four days sales amounted to $ 3 million. The concern is that the shortage will affect not only drug users, causing job losses in stores and losing money to schools in the country, which should benefit from tax levied on marijuana cultivation

The legalization of marijuana in Nevada is proving to be a dizzying success, to the extent that supplies have run out within just 10 days since the law went into effect.

The country's tax office said stocks were running out of stores. The main reason for this is much higher demand than supply.

According to the law, which was approved by the residents in November and came into effect on July 1, nearly 50 stores were licensed to sell marijuana, but have no authority to re-supply the inventory. This task is for alcohol wholesalers, who have been granted exclusive rights to distribute the material, as a compromise against the alcohol industry, which feared marijuana sales would hurt its revenues. However, as of Friday a wholesaler did not receive the license to distribute marijuana because "most of them do not yet meet the requirements for a license," said spokeswoman Stephanie Klapstein. For this reason, the country's governor, Brian Sandoval, on Friday supported the Tax Office's call for a state of emergency to allow the adoption of regulations that would expand the pool of distributors in order to end the shortage. The state's tax committee is scheduled to vote on the emergency measures on Thursday.

However, it may be too late for many stores, "based on reports that marijuana sales for adults have already surpassed expectations in the 47 state-licensed retail stores, and the reality is that many stores are running out of stock," Klepstein added.

The shortage does not only affect marijuana users. According to Kapelstein, he could lose jobs in stores and lose money to schools in the country, which are supposed to benefit from a 15 percent tax on marijuana. An additional sales tax of 10% is designated for the State Emergency Fund.

The law, which went into effect earlier this month, allows people over the age of 21 to buy 28 grams of marijuana. According to reports, in the first four days sales amounted to $ 3 million, generating tax revenues of $ 1 million.

Source - www.calcalist.co.il