California’s cannabis excise tax is set to increase from 15% to 19% starting July 1st.
That means total cannabis taxes – which are compounded – will jump from 38% to 42%. That’s higher than what you pay on alcohol (8.4%), tobacco (29.5%), or even gasoline.
This is unfair, unsustainable, and harmful.
High taxes are hurting the legal cannabis industry and driving consumers to the illicit market, where products are untested and unsafe.
We need to STOP this tax hike and keep the excise tax at 15%.
Assembly Bill 564 (AB564) could stop this increase – but we need your help.
👉 Please take 5 minutes to send an email to the lawmakers who can make a difference:
Senator Dave Cortese: senator.cortese@senate.ca.gov
Assemblymember Ash Kalra: ash@ashkalra.com
We’ve made it easy: below are two email templates you can copy, paste, and send.
📣 Every voice matters – help protect safe, legal cannabis access in California.
Thank you for your time and support!
June 3, 2025
Senator Dave Cortese
Re: Urgent Request to Halt the Scheduled Cannabis Excise Tax Increase
Dear Senator Cortese,
As a medical marijuana user and advocate, I am writing to urge your support for freezing the cannabis excise tax at 15%
in the 2025 Budget Act.
This tax increase will directly harm the constituents you represent. A 25% cannabis tax increase will drive consumers to
the illegal black market, where cannabis products are untested, and unsafe.
Two San Jose cannabis dispensaries, MedMen and Herbs, have closed, and the city stands to lose millions in revenue.
The closures and shrinking revenues are the result of customers leaving the legal market because of the high taxes.
Taxes are compounded and if the excise tax goes to 19%, the overall taxes will exceed 42%!
This will especially hurt seniors and the chronically ill, as they have to decide whether to buy their medication or pay for
their living expenses. It should NOT be this way! There is nothing in your life that you pay 40% tax on; not gasoline, not
alcohol, not tobacco. So why are the highest taxes on our medicine??
The Dept of cannabis Control’s 2024 report shows cannabis taxes amount to 78% of wholesale value, where alcohol is
8.4% and tobacco is 29.5%. This creates an impossible competitive disadvantage against illicit operators who pay no
taxes and follow no safety regulations. The current tax burden is ALREADY unsustainable.
More than 60% of cannabis sales in California already occur in the unregulated market, where products are untested,
untaxed, and often dangerous. Research confirms that cannabis consumers are highly price-sensitive: even a 1% price
differential can drive consumers away from the legal market. Raising taxes will only accelerate this trend, putting public
health at risk while reducing state revenue. We are being forced to purchase unsafe products in the illegal black market to
avoid these taxes!
Meanwhile, Michigan, with just one-quarter of our population, now sells more licensed cannabis than California. This isn't
because they have superior products; it's because they created a tax structure that keeps consumers in the regulated
market instead of driving them to illegal operators. AB 564 would amend the law that requires a tax hike on cannabis in
California.
We need your help with this. I respectfully urge you to include language freezing the cannabis excise tax at 15% in
the 2025 Budget Act trailer bill legislation.
June 3, 2025
Senator Ash Kalra
Re: Urgent Request to Halt the Scheduled Cannabis Excise Tax Increase
Dear Senator Kalra,
As a medical marijuana user and advocate, I am writing to urge your support for freezing the cannabis excise tax at 15% in the 2025 Budget Act. This tax increase will directly harm the constituents you represent. A 25% cannabis tax increase will drive consumers to the illegal black market, where cannabis products are untested, and unsafe.
Two San Jose cannabis dispensaries, MedMen and Herbs, have closed, and the city stands to lose millions in revenue. The closures and shrinking revenues are the result of customers leaving the legal market because of the high taxes. Taxes are compounded and if the excise tax goes to 19%, the overall taxes will exceed 42%! This will especially hurt seniors and the chronically ill, as they have to decide whether to buy their medication or pay for their living expenses. It should NOT be this way! There is nothing in your life that you pay 40% tax on; not gasoline, not alcohol, not tobacco. So why are the highest taxes on our medicine??
The Dept of cannabis Control’s 2024 report shows cannabis taxes amount to 78% of wholesale value, where alcohol is 8.4% and tobacco is 29.5%. This creates an impossible competitive disadvantage against illicit operators who pay no taxes and follow no safety regulations. The current tax burden is ALREADY unsustainable. More than 60% of cannabis sales in California already occur in the unregulated market, where products are untested, untaxed, and often dangerous. Research confirms that cannabis consumers are highly price-sensitive: even a 1% price differential can drive consumers away from the legal market. Raising taxes will only accelerate this trend, putting public health at risk while reducing state revenue. We are being forced to purchase unsafe products in the illegal black market to avoid these taxes!
Meanwhile, Michigan, with just one-quarter of our population, now sells more licensed cannabis than California. This isn't because they have superior products; it's because they created a tax structure that keeps consumers in the regulated market instead of driving them to illegal operators. AB 564 would amend the law that requires a tax hike on cannabis in California. We need your help with this. I respectfully urge you to include language freezing the cannabis excise tax at 15% in the 2025 Budget Act trailer bill legislation.
This is urgent — the cannabis excise tax increase takes effect July 1st.
Take 5 minutes today to make your voice heard.
Send your emails, share this message, and help protect California’s cannabis community before it’s too late
