Nevada's illegal cannabis market remains resilient as dispensaries lower costs to appeal to customers on and off The Strip, according to policy experts and state data. The State of Nevada Cannabis Compliance Board released the taxable sales data for 2025, reporting nearly $758 million from the regulated industry, down 8.6% from last year.

Annual Nevada cannabis sales dropped to $758 million from July 2024 to June 2025, down from $829 million over the prior fiscal year, according to state Cannabis Compliance Board data released last week. But as in other states with declining sales revenue, Nevada cannabis retailers aren’t selling less product, according to one observer.

“Our analysis of the sales, unequivocally shows that people were not buying less, the prices were just going down,” Riana Durrett, executive director of the UNLV Cannabis Policy Institute, said. “And that is natural, and that’s expected to happen.”

The popularity of cannabis continues to rise in 2026, with statistics showing that around 15% of Americans are current users, and more than 22% have used it sometime in the past year. As more people cut out alcohol amid the Dry January trend, dispensaries have reported a surge in marijuana sales, leading to what some industry insiders and media outlets have dubbed "High January."

The popularity of cannabis continues to rise in 2026, with statistics showing that around 15% of Americans are current users, and more than 22% have used it sometime in the past year. As more people cut out alcohol amid the Dry January trend, dispensaries have reported a surge in marijuana sales, leading to what some industry insiders and media outlets have dubbed "High January."

Jordan Wellington and Riana Durrett, executive director of the Cannabis Policy Institute at UNLV, recap the latest CPI Symposium and discuss tribal cannabis law, Nevada regulatory issues, and rating cannabis markets.

While federally decriminalizing marijuana could have “the greatest effect” on Nevada’s legal cannabis industry, reclassifying it as a less-dangerous drug could ease tax-related burdens for the businesses, according to a 2024 state-mandated report.

President Donald Trump said it loud and clear during his executive order on Dec. 18 to reschedule cannabis: He’s never been inundated by “so many people” on a particular issue. The move directing U.S. Attorney General Pamela Bondi to reclassify cannabis from Schedule I to Schedule III is not a small detail lost on just about anyone connected to the industry. Loosening restrictions on the plant through lowering its potential for abuse and finally recognizing its medicinal value breaks ties with 55 years of precedence under the Controlled Substances Act.

President Donald Trump signed an executive order Thursday calling on federal officials to finish reclassifying marijuana as a less dangerous drug — a major shift in federal drug policy that could open new avenues for medical research and ease the tax burden on Nevada cannabis businesses.

We're following up this morning on the president's executive order to reclassify marijuana from a Schedule I to a Schedule III drug. A lot of you might be wondering what that means, and maybe what it doesn't. The biggest thing is that the order does not make marijuana legal at the federal level.

President Donald Trump signed an executive order Thursday that could reclassify marijuana as a less dangerous drug and open new avenues for medical research, a major shift in federal drug policy that inches closer to what many states have done.

The UNLV Cannabis Policy Institute and Nevada Cannabis Compliance Board responded to President Donald Trump’s new executive order to change federal marijuana regulations.The order, signed Dec. 18, moves cannabis out of the most restrictive category of the federal Controlled Substances Act. Instead of being treated like heroin and other Schedule I drugs, marijuana would be reclassified as a Schedule III drug that recognizes medical use and a lower risk of abuse. Experts at UNLV say the move signals a shift in federal thinking, even if it doesn’t immediately change access for consumers.