As Towns Ban Marijuana, States Withhold the Drug's Tax Revenue

Massachusetts is deciding whether to keep marijuana tax revenue from anti-pot municipalities, stirring a debate that some states have already settled and others may face in the future.

Whenever a state legalizes recreational marijuana, there's always a local backlash. Have your drugs, towns and cities say, but keep them away from us. If a municipality bans pot, though, should they reap the financial benefits of it being legal?

Some states just say no.

Oregon has already started keeping marijuana tax revenue from localities that effectively ban the substance. California plans to withhold pot-funded law enforcement and health grants from places with a commercial marijuana ban. And now, an effort is underway in Massachusetts to reduce the amount of money that cities and towns with bans and other restrictions on operations get from the state’s 17 percent tax on marijuana sales.

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