Oregon-Pot Stores

Cannabis is on display at Shango Premium Cannabis, in Portland, Ore., Wednesday, Sept. 30, 2015. Oregon marijuana stores have begun sales to recreational users, marking a big day for the budding pot industry in the state. Some of the more than 250 dispensaries in Oregon that already offer medical marijuana opened their doors early Thursday to begin selling the drug just moments after it became legal to do so.

(Associated Press File Photo)

Calling the estimate "conservative," an economist on Monday said medical marijuana could generate up to $63 million annually for state coffers if regulated as proposed under bills currently in the Michigan Legislature.

"(It) can generate significant revenue and jobs," Dr. Gary Wolfram, an economist and professor at Hillsdale College, said via telephone at a press conference. "It will create a robust marketplace that will provide a positive economic impact."

Wolfram's report, commissioned by the Michigan Cannabis Development Association, says Michigan could expect revenues between $44.3 million and $63.5 million per year. Regulation could also create about 10,000 jobs.

The amounts are based on the number of registered patients who can legally buy medical marijuana. The 2015 medical marijuana patient population was 182,091, according to the Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory affairs, a press release said.

Wolfram estimates the state would generate $44.3 million assuming two-thirds of those people purchased marijuana from a licensed medical retailer. If 80 percent of those people bought marijuana from a licensed retailer, the revenue would exceed $52 million, according to his analysis.

If a "more regulated, accountable and transparent medical marijuana system" is implanted -- such as proposed by House Bills 4209, 4210 and 4827 -- the number of patients could increase, bringing the revenue up to $63.5 million per year, according to the report.

House Bill 4209, which won bipartisan support in the lower chamber, would create a system to regulate and tax medical marijuana dispensaries in communities that decide to allow them, according to previous MLive.com reports. The state would also license large-scale growers, processors, distributors and testing facilities.

HB 4210 would allow and regulate medical marijuana edibles and other non-smokable forms of the drug, while HB 4827 would create a seed-to-sale tracking system for marijuana plants and processed products.

The tiered system for medical marijuana growers, distributors and retailers is akin to the way the state regulates alcohol.

So where would all the money go?

Wolfram's analysis found that municipalities would receive $4.4 million to $6.3 million; counties would get $5.9 million to $8.5 million; county sheriffs would receive $800,000 to $1.1 million; and Michigan's General Fund would get $3.7 million to $5.3 million, according to a press release issued by the Byrum and Fisk public relations firm on behalf of Michigan Cannabis Development Association.

The revenue distribution is based on an excise tax of 3 percent on all medical marijuana retailers, as proposed in the legislation, the release said.

In a press conference via telephone Monday, Wolfram also stated regulating marijuana could also cut into the sales of illegal drug dealers.

"It will hopefully eliminate the black market," he said.

It will also make the marijuana people would consume safer.

"The patients will know where their marijuana is coming from," Wolfram added.

the Wolfram's breakdown

Wolfram was joined at the press conference by Willie Rochon, vice president of the Michigan Cannabis Development Association, who said the current proposed regulation and further regulation will help clear up any confusion surrounding the Medical Marijuana Act, approved by voters in 2008.

"The bottom line is that medical marijuana is here to stay in Michigan," Rochon said. "Now we have an opportunity to clarify this."

Read the full report:

John Counts is a reporter on MLive.com's statewide Impact team. Send tips to johncounts@mlive.com or you can follow him on Twitter.