Marijuana revenue adds unexpected funds to three cities in county

Three Portage County cities are seeing green, but it has nothing to do with the approach of St. Patrick’s Day.

Ohio voters passed Issue 2 in November 2023, allowing the sale of recreational marijuana in the state. Besides imposing a 10% tax on marijuana sales, the law stipulates that 64% of tax revenue from marijuana sales goes to the state’s general fund. It also directs 36% of tax revenue back to the cities, villages and townships that host at least one licensed dispensary to use as they wish.

But state lawmakers still needed to pass additional legislation to release the funds from state coffers. They took their time, passing Senate Bill 56 on Dec. 9, 2025. Gov. Mike DeWine signed it into law 10 days later.

Issue 2 stipulated that payments were to be made to local governments on a quarterly basis, but Senate Bill 56 established monthly payments. Distributions are to be made on the last day of each month.

Portage County is home to three licensed dispensaries: one in Kent, one in Ravenna and one in Streetsboro.

Kent

The Ohio Department of Taxation released the following figures for Kent, where Bliss is located on East Main Street, next to Kent Municipal Court:

FY 25 Q1 July 1, 2024-Sept. 30, 2024: $9,158.08 
FY 25 Q2 Oct. 1, 2024-Dec. 31, 2024: $31,795.11
FY 25 Q3 Jan. 1, 2025-March 31, 2025: $35,306.16
FY 25 Q4 April 1, 2025-June 30, 2025: $43,738.13
FY 26 Q1 July 1, 2025-Sept. 30, 2025: $38,610.63
FY 26 Oct. 2025: $13,007.78
FY 26 Nov. 2025: $15,259.52
FY 26 Dec. 2025: $13,475.75
TOTAL: $200,351.16

But, since Kent had not yet received its December 2025 revenue as of Feb. 16, the city’s true take as of that date was $186,875.41, Kent Mayor Jack Amrhein said.

The sum does not appear in the city’s annual budget because it is approved a year in advance and is based on the prior year’s actual income, he said.

“Any marijuana tax revenue received this year is being deposited into the general fund revenue account along with other general revenues. Collectively, those revenues form the basis for developing next year’s budget,” he said.

General fund revenue is largely dedicated to supporting Kent’s police, fire and streets, Amrhein said.

Moving forward, the city will continue its practice of intentionally underestimating revenue so that if collections are lower than anticipated, services are not affected, he said.

“For context, the city’s total 2026 budget is just under $60 million. If marijuana revenue averaged about $14,000 per month (similar to December), that would total roughly $168,000 annually, which is less than 0.3% of the overall budget. At that level, fluctuations up or down would not have a disruptive impact on city finances or services,” he said.

Ravenna

Ravenna’s dispensary, Supergood, opened in September 2024 on North Chestnut Street.

According to the state department of taxation, Ravenna’s unexpected revenue totals $470,707.72:

FY 25 Q1 July 1, 2024-Sept. 30, 2024: $21,834.18
FY 25 Q2 Oct. 1, 2024-Dec. 31, 2024: $74,439.93
FY 25 Q3 Jan. 1, 2025-March 31, 2025: $91,571.97
FY 25 Q4 April 1, 2025-June 30, 2025: $92,224.57
FY 26 Q1 July 1, 2025-Sept. 30, 2025: $64,960.22
FY 26 Oct. 2025: $65,169.85
FY 26 Nov. 2025: $31,078.81
FY 26 Dec. 2025: $29,428.19

Characterizing the funds as new and unexpected, Council President Rob Kairis said city lawmakers do not have a specific plan as to how the money may be used.

“Many of us in city government did not expect any money, and we sure did not have a clue it could be so much. As a result, no one planned for this. Whatever plans are established will be discussed in open meetings, so there will be no surprises with how the money ends up getting spent,” he said.

Simple math coupled with future uncertainty means Ravenna residents should support the city’s upcoming ask for a 0.25% income tax hike, Kairis said.

“With an anticipated average tax revenue from marijuana between $27,000 and $28,000 per month, that adds up to about $330,000 annually. The annual debt service on the loan is expected to be between $1.2-$1.3 million. That is a little over a quarter of the amount needed to pay the loan. We would still need to come up with nearly a million dollars each year,” he said.

But that is only half the picture, he said. The city’s ability to sell bonds — which translates to the interest rate Ravenna can get — is determined by the reliability of the revenue stream earmarked to pay the 30-year debt.

“If the dispensary goes out of business, how does the city replace that funding source?” Kairis asked. “It creates greater risk, resulting in a higher interest rate. The higher rate could minimize the benefit of even using dispensary taxes to pay the loan.”

It’s too late to change ballot language now, but should Ravenna’s bid for a 0.25% income tax rate increase fail in the May primary election, city council may consider reducing the percentage rate next time around.

Complicating matters are state lawmakers, who continue to float proposals that would tweak how — or even if — municipalities continue to receive marijuana sales tax revenue, Kairis said.

Ravenna’s Planning Committee, which includes three city council members, on Feb. 17 forwarded a recommendation to city council to renew Ravanna’s temporary moratorium on new dispensaries for six months.

Ravenna’s previous year-long temporary moratorium expired May 5, 2025. The matter will appear on city council’s agenda March 2 as the planning committee continues to explore zoning issues related to marijuana dispensaries.

Streetsboro

Streetsboro’s retail establishment, Ayr Dispensary, opened in March 2025 on state Route 14 near the Ohio Turnpike interchange.

Since then, the Ohio Department of Taxation reports the city’s take as $97,281.39:

FY 25 Q4 April 1, 2025-June 30, 2025: $3,858.26
FY 26 Q1 July 1, 2025-Sept. 30, 2025: $13,253.82
FY 26 Oct. 2025: $52,399.50
FY 26 Nov. 2025: $14,721.13
FY 26 Dec. 2025: $13,048.68

Echoing Kairis, Streetsboro Mayor Glenn Broska said the uncertainty of actual revenue presents a planning challenge.

“We don’t know or can plan for X amount of funding,” he said. “That is the reason why we just put it into the general fund. We did not want earmark to a specific fund and then not receive an expected amount.”

Money in the general fund can be moved where it is needed, he said.