Legal marijuana is a bona fide billion-dollar industry in Colorado. And it's hitting the mark faster than ever.

In 2017, Colorado eclipsed $1 billion in marijuana sales in eight months; in 2016, it took 10 months.

Colorado's marijuana retailers logged upward of $1.02 billion in collective medical and recreational sales through August, according to The Cannabist's extrapolations of state tax data released Wednesday. Year-to-date sales are up 21 percent from the first eight months of 2016, when recreational and medical marijuana sales totaled $846.5 million.

This year's cumulative sales equate to more than $162 million in  taxes and fees for Colorado coffers.

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