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Committee recommends repeal of obsolete illegal-cannabis tax to tax committee
Summary
The committee recommended Senate File 209, a bipartisan measure to repeal the illegal cannabis and controlled-substance tax and remove related criminal penalties, and re-referred the bill to the Senate Tax Committee.
Senate File 209, which would repeal the illegal cannabis and controlled-substance tax (the transcript referenced chapter 297D) and remove criminal penalties for failing to pay that tax, was recommended to pass and re-referred to the Senate Tax Committee on March 12.
A sponsor summarized the measure and historical context, saying the tax was adopted in 1986 during the peak of the war on drugs and had not produced collections in recent years. The sponsor told the committee the Department of Revenue had not reported revenue collected under the tax for 2022–2024 and said prosecutors no longer generally use the tax as an enforcement tool. The sponsor described prior bipartisan interest and earlier versions that reached conference discussions in 2022 and 2024.
No public testimony was offered at the March 12 hearing, and members did not raise substantive questions. The committee moved the bill to the Taxes Committee for further consideration.
The sponsor moved that Senate File 209 be recommended to pass and re-referred to the Senate Tax Committee; the committee approved the motion by voice vote and the motion prevailed.
