(WWJ) -- Recreational adult-use marijuana shops in Michigan made nearly $6.5 million in sales during the first month of legalization.
Recreational sales became legal on Dec. 1 and Michigan's Marijuana Regulatory Agency says the state netted just over $1 million in sales and excise taxes from December sales, according to a report from MLive. In addition to the state's 6% sales tax, there is a 10% excise tax on marijuana.
The MRA says the state has collected more than $1 million in application fees and around $1.4 million in licensing fees from approved businesses.
The state previously reported that sales exceeded $1.6 million in the first week and were higher than $3 million through two weeks.
After Michigan voters approved the legalization of marijuana in November 2018, the state has slowly eased into commerical sales over the last year. When recreational sales officially began on Dec. 1, there were just a handful of stores that were fully licensed to sell pot, including three in Ann Arbor. Now a month in, the state has approved licenses for 54 recreational marijuana businesses, including 26 retail stores.
State budget officials believe recreational marijuana sales in Michigan could hit $1.5 billion a year by late 2021.
