If prices actually dropped that low, then prices in the legal stores would likely be higher than street prices...and the illegal trade would continue to do well, killing the State profits.
Right, because bootleg liquor competes well when anyone can pick up booze at the store.
Why aren’t we flooded with illicit booze and tobacco then?
I’ll tell you why. When the government starts generating revenue, it becomes highly motivated to defend it’s own turf.
Actually, a friend-of-a-friend spoke with a pot-head at a party a couple of months ago. We live just a few miles from the border of Mexico and the pot-heads refuse to smoke Mexican weed, although it’s cheap and plentiful here. It’s considered low quality and (believe it or not) they don’t like the pesticides.
Apparently, there’s a sweet-spot where the consumer is willing to pay the price for good drugs. Plus, they would prefer to do drugs legally and are wiling to pay a bit more to so so.
If you look at the situation with cigarettes, you’ll see that there’s a point where the price for legal items is just too high. Then the bootlegging starts again.
The trick for impacting the drug trade is for our government to not get too greedy. (I know, I know.. we’ve already lost.)