A California bill that would have levied taxes on medical marijuana growers appears dead.
The Senate Appropriations Committee did not approve AB2243 ahead of a deadline on Thursday.
Experts estimated that the bill by Democratic Assemblyman Jim Wood of Healdsburg would have raised at least $71 million annually for local police and environmental cleanup.
Wood says he’s not sure what happened since the bill previously had unanimous bipartisan support. He says he doesn’t know what got in the way of good policy.
Wood’s district includes prime land for growing marijuana. He says the money is needed to mitigate environmental damage from illegal pot grows.
Taxes on marijuana flowers would have ranged from $4.75 to $13.25 per ounce depending on the grower’s license.
Some marijuana activists opposed the taxes as unreasonably high.
