Ever wondered where all those taxes you pay on cannabis go?

Now, hear me out: I am NOT encouraging kids to smoke pot.  

Far from it.

But I am saying that children, teens and other members of the community benefit when YOU buy cannabis, at least in Vista, California.

Vista, in 2021, became one of the first cities in North San Diego County to allow recreational cannabis dispensaries. And now it’s considered a model city in terms of how to put tax revenues from cannabis sales to good use for the benefit of the community and residents…and children.

It all started in 2018 when Vista voters passed Measure Z, which essentially established a 7% tax for cannabis sold at dispensaries. The measure allowed up to 11 medical marijuana dispensaries in the city of Vista.

When they put Measure Z on the ballot, the cash-strapped city didn’t think it would bring in that much revenue.

Well, they were pleasantly surprised. Vista took in $1.3 million in cannabis tax revenue in 2020. Not bad, right? The next year it jumped to $5.1 million and to $6.8 million in 2022 and close to $7 million in 2023 and 2024.

In the beginning, that revenue was going to Vista’s general fund, which pays for the city’s operations and basic services.

But in 2021, the city decided to spend some of the revenue on other uses. They decided that $4 million would go to the general fund but any additional revenues would go towards community-based programs and activities for the betterment of Vista residents, including sports, academic and recreational scholarships for low-income youth, parks, and street lights, among other needs.

According to the Voice of San Diego, Vista gave out a total of $773,412 in cannabis-funded scholarships to 2,200 youth between July 1, 2023 and June 30, 2024. Vista Councilmember Corinna Contreras told Voice of San Diego: “It’s critical that these benefits don’t just get stuck in a bureaucracy. Our residents should be able to see their tax money working for them to better their everyday lives.”

And recently, the Vista City Council voted to make sharing tax revenues with other departments a city policy. That means that each year 15% of cannabis tax revenues must be used for recreational and educational programs, including the scholarship program, and 20% for other projects. A Vista official said that annually, close to $200,000 is allocated to academic scholarships and $800,000 for recreational scholarships.

Chris Shallal, a manager of Wellgreens Dispensary in Vista, told NBC San Diego that Measure Z ended up being a win-win for his dispensary.

“The city wants our revenue, and we’re willing to give that revenue,” Shallal said. “We want our store to boom. We want this city to be regenerated, and we want that money to go toward incentives for the families of Vista.”