North Dakota State Tax Commissioner Brian Kroshus, right, provides comment to North Dakota Republican lawmakers Rep. Robin Weisz, Sen. Jerry Klein and Rep. Glenn Bosch on the estimated financial impact of two November ballot bills, Friday, Aug. 23, 2024, at the State Capitol in Bismarck, N.D. (AP Photo/Jack Dura)

BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — North Dakota lawmakers struggled Friday to accurately estimate the financial impact of legalizing recreational marijuana, a factor voters will face in November when they vote on the issue.

The discussion between a high-level legislative panel, the state’s top tax official and the leader of the popular initiative focused on estimates of sales tax revenue and the overall costs of legalization, such as social impacts and things that state authorities are demanding but the measure does not require. Voters will see the financial estimates on their ballots.

Lawmakers turned to state Tax Commissioner Brian Kroshus, who said sales tax revenues “are actually speculative” but provided an estimate of $7.281 million every two years based on a 5% sales tax rate.

North Dakota prepares its budget on a two-year basis. The measure does not set a tax rate. That would be up to the legislature.

Measure leader Steve Bakken presented his group’s estimates for tax revenue, based on data from six other states extrapolated to North Dakota, and cited annual estimates of $19.46 million on average and $7.65 million as a minimum.

Ultimately, the board approved estimates of $10.3 million in revenue, $8.3 million in expenses and an “undetermined amount” in other costs related to “behavioral health and social impacts.” The revenue estimate includes Kroshus’ figure.

Some expenses caught lawmakers’ attention, such as a one-time expenditure of $4 million estimated by the state Highway Patrol for saliva testing equipment to be purchased in the next biennial fiscal year.

Major Tom Iverson of the Highway Patrol said the agency is likely to request the devices because it expects officers to encounter more marijuana use on the streets if the measure is passed.

The Highway Patrol is currently testing about a dozen of these devices across the state, Iverson said. The devices are comparable to a preliminary breathalyzer test, he said.

Republican Senator Kyle Davison called the $4 million “just financially over the top.” At one point, Republican Representative Ben Koppelman said, “It feels like we’re painting this in a negative light, and I’m not a proponent of that, but we have to be fair.”

Republican Senator Jerry Klein pointed out that people probably already had an opinion on the measure and that revenue probably didn’t matter to them.

Twenty-four states have legalized marijuana for recreational use, most recently Ohio last year. Other states, such as Florida and South Dakota, will vote on the issue this fall. North Dakota voters rejected previous measures in 2018 and 2022.

In addition, the panel approved an estimated cost to the state of $3.15 billion over two years if voters pass a measure to eliminate local property taxes based on assessed value. The measure would require the state to provide replacement revenue for local governments.