Hartford, CT: Legalizing the commercial cannabis market in Connecticut could yield nearly $1 billion in new tax revenue over five years and create nearly 17,500 new jobs, according to an economic analysis authored by an economist at the University of Connecticut.
The analysis estimates that tax revenue would grow from as much as $48 million in year one to as much as $223 million in year five. It further estimates that legalization could lead to as many as 17,462 new jobs within five years.
“Legalization will generate significant job creation, strong growth in GDP, and hundreds of millions in new tax revenues,” the study says. “In the face of the challenge of recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic, legalization offers a path to a stronger recovery.”
Funding for the analyses was provided by the Marijuana Policy Project.
The state’s Democratic Governor, Ned Lamont, has publicly endorsed adult-use legalization, but legislative efforts in 2020 were abruptly cut short following the COVID-19 pandemic.
Full text of the report, “Projecting Economic Impacts of Legalizing Marijuana in Connecticut,” appears online .