One local politician is saying it’s high time to reach beyond the usual means to raising cash and wants to tax pot.

Sen. Robert J. Kane, R-Watertown, wants to take advantage of a law from 1991 that allows the state government to tax illegal marijuana sales.

State police got their hands on nearly 1,400 kilograms of marijuana during the fiscal year that ended last June 30.

Taxing pot at $3.50 a gram could have generated more than $4.8 million in tax revenue. And that’s just for the marijuana that police know about.

This is the second year that Kane has pushed for the pot plan, the Waterbury Republican-American reports.

The first was extinguished in the Finance, Revenue and Bonding Committee, but Kane hopes to re-ignite the issue with a bill now in the Senate.

"Everyone but the drug dealers would benefit," Kane said.