what is considered underground 
the list of activities deemed to be underground economic transactions varies depending on the laws of a given jurisdiction for example in some countries alcohol is banned while other nations encourage legal brewery distillery and distribution operations similarly while drugs are illegal in most countries some nations plus an increasing number of u s states have legalized the sale and use of cannabis in the early 1900s mexican immigrants introduced recreational marijuana use to the united states during the great depression high unemployment rates triggered fears of marijuana consumption which coupled with racist sentiments at the time led to research that linked marijuana to violent crime 5consequently by 1931 29 u s states outlawed the drug nonetheless many people deemed the plant to be harmless and continued buying and selling it illegally subsequent studies refuted the idea that marijuana was linked to crime while declaring that the drug was neither addictive nor a gateway to other drugs instead proponents argue marijuana has proven to be therapeutically helpful in treating illnesses such as cancer and aids 6as of 2022 37 states and the district of columbia have legalized the plant for medical use which is now abundantly present in some food products as well as many topical and oral medications as of 2022 18 states and d c allow for non medical regulated cannabis 7the irs considers money earned from babysitting as taxable self employment income and when the amount is greater than 400 for the year as of 2022 must be reported when the individual files their tax return 8meanwhile an estimated 53 2 of cigarette sales in new york state in 2018 latest figures were facilitated through underground economic transactions although tobacco is legal in new york city the product carries an exorbitant sin tax and so many sales go unreported or under the table 9all such under the table transactions in which participants fail to report their income to the irs or the state are technically considered to be underground economic activities this status can even apply to babysitters who don t report the cash that they pocket after watching a neighbor s child down the street other primary examples of underground economic activity include the untaxed sale of physical goods and the smuggling of goods into a country to avoid paying duties at the border human trafficking operations also comprise the underground economy as do the markets for copyrighted materials endangered animal species antiquities and illegally harvested human organs 