Kristian Rouz – The US state of Washington is anticipating to extract significant fiscal benefits from legal marijuana sales as the market has been booming since legalizing the licensed use of medical and recreational weed.

However, Olympia’s bright fiscal outlook might be undermined, as the marijuana industry in the neighboring state of Oregon is starting to distract customers from the Evergreen State.

The ‘weed craze’ in Portland has offered more often than not more attractive prices since the legalization bill was adopted in July, thus impairing the commercial performance of pot shops in the Seattle-Vancouver border region.

While marijuana prices are poised to go down, either the expansion in business operations or the drug abstinence debate would help fulfill Olympia’s plan to gather some $1 bln in weed tax over the course of the next four years.

According to State of Washington Office of Financial Management’s (OFM) fiscal projections, Olympia is about to collect some $1 bln in tax returns from legal marijuana sales over the next four years. The report is based on actual figures: during this past year since licensed weed use...