Missouri customers are already paying their fair share. Sales tax revenues from marijuana in Missouri have tripled the original estimates.
By Rebecca Rivas, Missouri Independent
Missouri Supreme Court rules that counties and cities cannot stack taxes on marijuana, Tuesday.
In a 6-1 decision, the state’s highest court concluded the 2022 constitutional amendment that legalized recreational marijuana limits the definition of “local government” to allow only one municipality to impose a 3 percent sales tax—a village, town or city in an incorporated area and a county in an unincorporated area.
The drafters of the constitutional amendment “specified a ‘local government’ is based on the area in which the dispensary is located,” the court ruled.
Robust Missouri 3 LLC is a dispensary in Florissant. Customers have paid a combined sales tax of nearly 21 percent. That includes 3 percent from the City of Florissant as well as St. Louis County.
According to Missouri Department of Revenue, the court decision will only allow the Florissant tax to remain. This tax is imposed by both the city and county government in more than 70 locations across the state.
Zel M. Fisher was the only dissenting judge, who argued that both areas incorporated or unincorporated are included in the definition of the local government amendment. Fischer wrote that it would allow counties to collect the sales tax in unincorporated areas and impose it on incorporated ones.
“The patently absurd results of holding that ‘and’ means ‘or’ and that St. Louis County is not a ‘local government’ within its own territorial jurisdiction confirms, once again, that simply applying the constitution’s plain language meaning is the surest way for this court to implement the law as it was intended,” Fischer argued.
A panel of Missouri appellate judges agreed with Robust in November, ruling that the constitution’s “plain, unambiguous” language means cities and counties cannot stack marijuana sales taxes.
This decision overturned a ruling from a lower-court last year which allowed Florissant County and St. Louis County both to impose a 3% sales tax on marijuana.
It also decided the outcome of a separate case that is currently in front of the Western District Court of Appeals. In that case, a Buchanan County judge also ruled that taxes could be stacked. Western District Court stopped the action while it awaited the Supreme Court ruling.
Andrew Mullins said the Missouri Cannabis Trade Association and its other industry partners filed a lawsuit days after the start of double taxation in 2023 to “protect the customers that have made Missouri’s marijuana programs the envy of states.”
Mullins claims that Tuesday’s decision will allow Missouri cannabis consumers to save $3 million per month.
Mullins noted that Missouri customers have already paid their fair shares, as the sales tax revenue generated by cannabis has tripled from initial estimates. The ruling preserves Missouri as one of America’s most accessible and impactful cannabis programs. Patients and adults will continue to enjoy fair prices, excellent service, and a wide range of products.
First published in Missouri Independent.