Cannabis-friendly state legislation involving the Resort Corridor may offer a crucial opportunity for Las Vegas’ ability to attract visitors amid projected shortfalls, a gaming executive says.

UNLV’s Cannabis Policy Institute (CPI) and International Gaming Institute (IGI) will host the latest installment of CPI’s Cannabis Speakers Series with a panel discussion titled “Cannabis & Gaming,” set for 1:30 p.m. PST on Monday (May 19) in the William S. Boyd School of Law’s moot courtroom and online.  

After the legalization of cannabis in the state, Nevada has generated over a billion dollars in taxes for the state. While the marijuana industry has its ups and downs, the Las Vegas Paiute Tribe saw its opportunity to grow cannabis.

Cannabis lounges were once seen as a promising new frontier in Nevada’s legal marijuana industry — the bedrock of a new Amsterdam-like weed tourism district in a Sin City on the cutting edge of hospitality innovation.

Eight years ago, Nevadans voted to legalize cannabis for recreational use. But a lot has changed since 2017.

Illegal cannabis sales from criminal networks have been cutting into profits at legal establishments across Nevada, according to regulators. Regulators presented the numbers to a Senate committee, this week, as lawmakers discussed avenues for enforcement and ways to discourage the illegal market with proposed Assembly legislation.

Where does Nevada’s cannabis industry stand in 2025? What can consumers expect with prices? And how does the 2024 Presidential Election factor in? Our in-studio panel weighs in. Then we meet George Lee, a former Las Vegas blackjack dealer with an incredible story of his start as a ballet dancer on Broadway.

Buying marijuana on the Las Vegas Strip is illegal. That doesn’t mean it’s difficult. Tourists are only a Google search away from the many illegal websites offering delivery to the Resort Corridor. Others can hop on social media to find “pop-up sales parties” in nearby hotel suites. And, as Assemblymember Max Carter II, D-Las Vegas, recalls a visitor telling him, rideshare vehicles will sometimes come supplied with a mini-dispensary.