Will Cities Lose Out on Pot Tax Because of Moratoriums?

To the likely delight of libertarian-minded people everywhere, Colorado Attorney General John Suthers has decided the state will collect sales tax on medical marijuana. Late yesterday, Suthers released a legal opinion that mandates the proliferating dispensaries must seek a retail sales license from the state in order to operate, reports The Denver Post.

Advocates at the Colorado Wellness Association believe most dispensary owners will appreciate the move “if it will help prove the legitimacy of their efforts.”

Indeed, credibility is enough of a concern in Pueblo County that a commissioner recently bailed on a dispensary tour when he learned a reporter was on the way, according to the Chieftain. Commissioner Anthony Nuñez was ostensibly visiting the dispensary to better understand the case of its owner, who’s been lobbying the commissioners there to refrain from enacting a temporary ban on dispensary licensing.

The county will vote this morning on whether to follow the city’s lead on a moratorium, an issue taken up in various municipalities across Colorado of late.

The community of Lyons is also looking at a temporary ban, notes the Longmont Times-Call, and Grand Junction voted yesterday to place a one-year moratorium on dispensaries there, writes the Daily Sentinel. Aurora has also voted in favor of a short-term ban, reports the Post, which runs down a list of towns that have considered bans of differing lengths and points out that elected officials in Fort Collins and Loveland also plan to vote on the issue tonight.