A Michigan Court of Claims judge in Detroit will hear arguments Tuesday, November 25, on whether a controversial new tax on marijuana was adopted in violation of the state Constitution. The 24% wholesale tax on cannabis was the linchpin of a budget deal that was adopted last month by the Legislature and signed by Governor Gretchen Whitmer. The adult-use cannabis industry sued because a voter-approved ballot initiative already imposed a retail tax on cannabis.
"This was an unconstitutional move. End of sentence. Full stop," said Rose Tantraphol, spokesperson for the Michigan Cannabis Industry Association. She said the Legislature could not add a new wholesale marijuana tax on top of the existing tax on retail cannabis sales without supermajority votes.
"When the state Legislature passed this law imposing a 24% wholesale tax on cannabis, it did so in violation of provisions in the state's constitution," she told Michigan Public Radio. "Lawmakers used a Trojan Horse process during chaotic middle-of-the-night actions to ram this legislation through."
The cannabis industry lawsuit says the initiative is supposed to help develop a legal adult-use cannabis industry, while the new wholesale tax will force cannabis retailers to shutter.
Read more at Michigan Public
