Lebanon City Council adopts resolution opposing state bill that would redirect cannabis tax revenue

Lebanon City Council adopted a resolution opposing provisions in Senate Bill 56 and any legislation that would redirect host-community cannabis tax revenue to Ohio’s general fund, council members voted during the meeting.

The resolution, read aloud by city staff, cites Ohio Revised Code Section 3780.23 and says 36% of the adult-use cannabis tax was intended for the host community cannabis fund to benefit municipalities or townships with dispensaries. City staff told council the city expects the local portion to be “significant” and said the revenue was included in the current budget as a rough estimate of about $100,000.

The measure argues that redirecting the host-community share would be inconsistent with the ballot initiative voters approved on Nov. 7, 2023, and would shift decisions about use of those tax dollars away from local officials. City staff also said they had discussed the matter with state legislators; one staff member reported speaking with Senator Wilson, who said he would forward the council’s concerns to the committee handling the bill.

Council members asked staff for context on the size and timing of the revenue. City staff said the state has been collecting the adult-use tax since August of the previous year but that Lebanon had not yet received a distribution. Staff reported statewide gross recreational marijuana sales of almost $300 million in the first five months after implementation, which yields roughly $30 million in tax receipts at 10%, and that 36% of the tax revenue is earmarked for host communities under the cited Ohio Revised Code section. Staff also said it was not yet clear whether distributions to host communities will be calculated by a dispensary’s sales or divided by number of dispensaries.

Council members framed the possible loss of revenue as a concern for the municipal budget: city staff said the local share had been budgeted to help pay for recurring items such as a police officer’s position. The resolution was moved, seconded and adopted on a roll call vote recorded as unanimous among members present.

The resolution directs city leadership to communicate the council’s position to state lawmakers and to request that the host-community funding remain intact as voters had expected.

Published details of the council’s estimate, the legal citation the staff read aloud, and the staff’s conversations with state legislators were part of the public record during the meeting.