Moye White partner Scott Greiner was featured last week as a legal expert on deducting marijuana expenses.
Juliette Fairly writes:
“While Colorado stands to gain $67 million in tax revenues and $600 million in gross sales from the sale of legalized marijuana, the companies who dispense, supply, grow and distribute the plant-based drug aren’t allowed to deduct most business expenses.
That’s because under President Ronald Reagan in the 1980s, the IRS created tax code 280E to prevent individuals engaged in drug trafficking from profiting.
“Right now, marijuana businesses in Colorado and the rest of the U.S. are not allowed to take business deductions, which can more than double their tax liability,” said David Downs, editor of the San Francisco Chronicle‘s pot blog, “Smell The Truth. “In California, the IRS has also disallowed such deductions for dispensaries.”
To be specific, Tax Code § 280E prohibits marijuana businesses from deducting ordinary and necessary business expenses from gross income in arriving at taxable income. Such expenses can include business development, advertising and marketing costs, bank or payroll fees, employment taxes, garbage removal fees, packaging and supplies, phone and internet charges, postage, expenses for attending conferences, travel and entertainment costs, rent, wages for store clerks, equipment and display cases, security systems and utilities.
But diversification can provide some relief.
“If you have two separate and distinct lines of businesses under one roof and one is non-marijuana, the latter can deduct business expenses associated with its non-marijuana business activities so long as that activity is not incidental to the sale of marijuana,” said Scott Greiner, attorney and tax partner with the Moye White law firm in Denver.”
Read the full story here: http://www.mainstreet.com/article/moneyinvesting/taxes/how-deduct-marijuana-expenses?page=1
