Marijuana Business Tax Handicap Upheld by Oregon Court

Marijuana suppliers are not afforded the same typical tax deductions as regular businesses, an Oregon court has ruled.

The Oregon Tax Court on Thursday upheld two state laws that reapplied to the state tax code a 1980s-era federal tax code section, Sec. 280E, which prohibits typical expense deductions for businesses trafficking controlled substances, after a 2014 ballot measure nullified the application of Sec. 280E. James Wakefield, who legally sells marijuana in Oregon, had sought to effectively restore the text of the ballot measure, which in legalizing recreational marijuana also “disconnected” the state tax code from Section 280E of the tax ...