Will Oregon Cannabis Sales Soar Or Dip Now That CA Has Legal Pot?

Despite restrictions on recreational cannabis sales in four of the seven Oregon counties bordering California, some pot store owners predict a dip in future sales following California's recent decision to legalize cannabis, according to Medford's Mail Tribune.

Officially opening the gates to legal cannabis sales Jan. 1, California became the eighth state (along with the District of Columbia) to legalize the controversial plant in the US. Now, with cannabis tourism along the West Coast all but nullified, Oregon pot store owners say they'll likely see fewer Californians crossing the border to purchase weed.

"We will absolutely have a decrease in sales," Ashland cannabis store owner Brie Malarkey told the Mail Tribune. "It's not going to be such a thrill anymore. If they have it in their home states, they won't come here."

Following two full years of legal and taxed recreational and medical cannabis sales in Oregon, the state Department of Revenue in October 2017 announced $85 million in cannabis sales tax revenue would be distributed to the state's cities and counties, as well as specific government agencies.

But because it's illegal — even still — to transport cannabis across state lines, it's unclear just how much Oregon marijuana Californians can actually be credited with purchasing.

Whether cannabis sales will decrease is nevertheless a possibility for which some are apparently bracing — but Mann reports another possibility: the beginning of a truly competitive cannabis market along the West Coast, with Washington, Oregon, and California cannabis growers now debating over which state produces the finest green.

"We have amazing cannabis," Malarkey told the Mail Tribune, asserting Oregon's secure foothold in the market by "pointing out that Southern Oregon is at the northern tip of the so-called 'Emerald Triangle,' the three prime pot-growing counties in California: Humboldt, Trinity and Mendocino."

In any event, one thing is certain at least: The US West Coast has gone green.

With 16 of the 18 Oregon counties west of the Cascade Range open to cannabis sales, and six of those counties along Interstate-5, a cannabis connoisseur could now legally travel the whole 1,380-mile stretch to find out for certain who grows the best ganja — just so long as they don't take their purchases over any borders.

See Also:

• The Legal Weed You Buy In January In CA May Not Be Safe
  
• 42 CA Businesses Have Permits To Sell Marijuana Starting Jan 1

Pot Shops Ring In 2018 With Broad Pot Legalization In California

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