Question 1

Where are you located and do you meet in person?

Accepted Answer

We work remotely with OLCC-licensed operators across Oregon — Portland, Salem, Eugene, Bend, Medford, Hillsboro, Beaverton, Gresham, Corvallis, Springfield, Albany and beyond. Most engagements run entirely by video and secure document exchange; site visits are arranged when a facility walkthrough genuinely adds value to the costing work.

Question 2

What does an engagement cost?

Accepted Answer

Ongoing accounting and tax work is quoted as a monthly fee based on license count, transaction volume and entity complexity. Catch-up work, audit representation and transaction support are scoped separately so you can see each piece before committing.

Question 3

Do you take clients who are behind on filings?

Accepted Answer

Frequently. Unfiled returns, unremitted marijuana tax and years of unreconciled books are common starting points. We triage what carries the most risk, fix that first, and bring the rest current on a defined schedule.

Question 4

Can you work with our existing bookkeeper or attorney?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Many clients keep internal bookkeeping and use us for costing, review, tax and advisory. We coordinate with cannabis counsel routinely on licensing, entity and transaction matters.

Question 5

Does Section 280E apply to every Oregon cannabis license?

Accepted Answer

It applies to every plant-touching licensee — producers, processors, wholesalers and retailers. Testing laboratories and most ancillary businesses fall outside it, and federally compliant hemp operations are not subject to it at all.

Question 6

Does Oregon give any relief from 280E?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Oregon allows licensed recreational businesses a subtraction on the Oregon return for expenses disallowed federally under Section 280E. It does not change the federal bill, but it materially reduces the state one — especially for retailers.

Question 7

What is the Corporate Activity Tax and does it apply to us?

Accepted Answer

Oregon's CAT is calculated on commercial activity above a statutory threshold rather than on profit, which means a high-revenue cannabis business can owe it in a year it loses money. We model it quarterly alongside federal estimates.

Question 8

Is the 17% marijuana retail tax an expense?

Accepted Answer

No. You collect it from the consumer and remit it to the Oregon Department of Revenue, so it belongs in a liability account. Recording it as revenue overstates your top line and every margin figure below it.

Question 9

How often should our books be reconciled to Metrc?

Accepted Answer

Monthly, as part of close. Metrc records the physical inventory the state believes you hold; the ledger records the financial version of the same thing. Any gap is both a compliance and an accounting issue.

Question 10

What accounting software do you recommend?

Accepted Answer

QuickBooks Online works well for most Oregon operators when paired with proper cannabis costing schedules. We also support clients on Sage, Xero or an ERP fed by their point-of-sale system.

Question 11

How long does a monthly close take?

Accepted Answer

Fifteen business days after complete records are received is our standard. Retailers with clean point-of-sale exports and disciplined cash logs often close sooner.

Question 12

Can you clean up several years of neglected books?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Cleanup is scoped as a separate project with a fixed deliverable: restated inventory and COGS, corrected tax liabilities and a ledger you can file and finance from.

Question 13

How likely is an IRS audit for a cannabis business?

Accepted Answer

Higher than for a comparable non-cannabis company, largely because 280E positions invite review. The determining factor in the outcome is almost always documentation quality rather than audit selection.

Question 14

What triggers examination most often?

Accepted Answer

Cost of goods sold that is large relative to the license type, related-party management fees without substance, inconsistent year-over-year reporting, and cash deposits that do not reconcile to reported sales.

Question 15

Will you represent us if you did not prepare the return?

Accepted Answer

Yes. We regularly take over federal and Oregon examinations of returns prepared elsewhere.

Questions Oregon Cannabis Operators Ask Us

Working with us

Section 280E and taxes

Accounting and Metrc

Audits and risk

Talk with a Cannabis CPA Oregon operators actually use