Jonathan Starkey

The News Journal

Delaware could raise $6 million in new tax revenue by legalizing marijuana, according to a new study from the personal finance site NerdWallet, which used federal data of pot smokers in each state and Colorado's 15 percent excise tax on legal marijuana sales to generate the estimate.

That's a small slice of the pie compared to the $3.1 billion in new taxes that NerdWallet predicts would flow into states with full legalization.

Delaware lawmakers are not seriously considering legalizing marijuana, and have yet to open a medical marijuana dispensary more than three years after legalizing the drug for qualified patients.

Rep. Helene Keeley, a Wilmington Democrat, introduced two versions of marijuana reform in Legislative Hall earlier this year. The first, later scrapped, would have allowed Delawareans to legally possess up to an ounce of marijuana for personal use, without regulating and taxing sales of the drug.

A House committee passed a less ambitious measure that would replace criminal penalties for the possession of small amounts of marijuana with civil, $250 fines. The legislation did not received a full House debate before the two-year legislative session adjourned on June 30.

Gov. Jack Markell has expressed support for removing criminal penalties for the possession of marijuana, and the legislation could be renewed when lawmakers return to Dover in January.

It's worth noting, however, that $6 million would not exactly solve the state's budget woes. The state collected $3.5 billion in General Fund taxes last year, including $214 million from casino and lottery proceeds and $114 million from cigarette taxes.

Contact Jonathan Starkey at 983-6756, on Twitter @jwstarkey or at jstarkey@delawareonline.com.