Pueblo County voters to decide on marijuana tax refund

Pueblo County voters will decide whether they’ll get a refund from Uncle Sam or let the government keep it.

The county netted $548,000 last year from the 3 and-a-half percent sales tax on recreational marijuana sales. That exceeds the $400,000 estimate the county made.

Under the state’s Taxpayer Bill of Rights, the county must ask the voters whether it can keep the roughly $150,000 surplus or issue a refund. Commissioner Sal Pace said the refund would be about $1 to $1.50 for county residents.

If voters allow the county to keep the money, Pace said he’d like it to be spent on playgrounds.

Pace told KRDO NewsChannel 13 he wasn’t surprised at the amount of tax revenue generated from recreational marijuana sales last year.

“I think we saw it coming the last half of the year when we put together the estimated amount of revenue off our 3 and-a-half [percent sales tax],” Pace said.

The county is working on the ballot language, which will include how the county plans to spend the money. Commissioners haven’t decided on the use yet.