Medical cannabis producer sues state over gross receipts taxes
New Mexico’s largest medical cannabis producer is suing the state Taxation and Revenue Department in an effort to recover more than $1.5 million in gross receipts taxes the company says it shouldn’t have had to pay because its products are medicine.
State law exempts prescription drugs from gross receipts taxes. The lawsuit, filed last week in state District Court in Santa Fe by Sandoval County-based nonprofit Ultra Health, argues medical cannabis should be treated the same.
Duke Rodriguez, CEO and president of Ultra Health, says that if the suit is successful, it will help patients in the state’s Medical Cannabis Program because gross receipts taxes are passed on to consumers.
“Affordability is an issue for all New Mexicans, and even a more significant burden to the severe qualifying conditions suffered by medical cannabis patients,” Rodriguez said in a statement provided by his lawyer, Kate Ferlic.
Read more: http://www.santafenewmexican.com/news/local_news/medical-cannabis-producer-sues-state-over-gross-receipts-taxes/article_24924701-e368-5de2-9af8-21169dbddd75.html