Long Beach could join several other California cities in seeking to boost city coffers by taxing marijuana.

The City Council on Tuesday will consider a proposal to place a measure on the November ballot that would levy a 5% tax on medical marijuana collectives.

Another tax of up to 10% on other marijuana businesses would go into effect only if California voters also pass Proposition 19, which would legalize, regulate and tax marijuana for recreational use.

Long Beach's proposal, drafted by the city’s Department of Financial Management, also calls for taxing medical marijuana cultivation sites at .0075 cents per square foot.

The growth of pot dispensaries -- and the drug’s potential legalization statewide -- has presented a rare opportunity for cities desperately searching for new revenues. Berkeley and Sacramento are considering similar measures.

Long Beach is facing an $18.5-million budget deficit, and for some on the city council, which voted in May to regulate medical marijuana collectives, taxation is the next logical step.

"We tax alcohol. We tax cigarettes. Why wouldn't we look at taxing marijuana?" Long Beach Councilman Patrick O’Donnell said. "We're turning over every rock to find new revenues, and under one of those rocks may be marijuana."

Critics, however, say such a tax could unfairly target medical marijuana patients.