Santa Barbara County collected less than a million dollars from the cannabis industry in the third quarter of the fiscal year, coming in below the expected projections in tax revenues for permitting, licensing, and enforcement for Fiscal Year 2024-25, according to a report released to the Board of Supervisors Tuesday.

Cannabis Program Manager Carmela Beck presented the updated figures, which totaled about $870,800 in taxes from 31 different operations in the county. Eighteen more operators did not harvest this season and reported no gross revenues from January to March. So far, the county has collected $3.9 million in Fiscal Year 2024-25, with the bulk of revenues coming from indoor cultivation (greenhouses, enclosed buildings, and operations with artificial lighting) with about $505,000 from this quarter and a total of $2 million this year.

At the current rate, the county is projected to reach about $5.4 million in cannabis tax revenues this fiscal year, more than a half-million short of the originally projected total of more than $6 million. 

In addition to tax revenues, the county’s enforcement activities resulted in more than $3,600 worth of dried cannabis products and $24,000 more in processed products, with more than 1,500 illegal vapes, edibles, and pre-rolls seized by the Sheriff’s Office.

Next month, the county will likely be approving ordinance amendments to reduce the allowed acreage for cannabis grows. County staff are also working with 29 operators to get them up to date with recently adopted odor abatement requirements, which will require new systems to be in place and installed by March 31, 2026.

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