A bait-and-switch on marijuana taxes in Ohio...Surprise!

COLUMBUS, Ohio — The state is currently withholding $10.9 million in taxes owed to Ohio cities from marijuana sales, prompting Gov. Mike DeWine and state lawmakers to consider reallocating some or all of these funds away from local governments.

Ohio’s law initially enticed municipalities to allow recreational marijuana dispensaries within their city limits with the promise of extra tax dollars. This bait-and-switch could ultimately leave those cities with nothing to show for their efforts.

Ohio’s marijuana laws empower municipalities to make the final determination on whether to permit dispensaries within their jurisdictions.

Additionally, these laws impose a 10% sales tax, with 36% of the revenue allocated to the towns that opted to allow dispensaries. However, state officials assert that Issue 2, the citizen-initiated statute that legalized recreational marijuana and outlined a tax distribution framework, failed to establish a suitable method for allocating those tax dollars.

DeWine, Tierney said, believes that when the state provides funds to local governments that they should be spent in a targeted way — not given to municipalities as discretionary funds.

He said voters wanted recreational marijuana, but didn’t necessarily want the whole bill or the taxes it created.

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