( CNN ) -- With their budgets teetering on bankruptcy , states are digging deep to find creative ways to ease their financial woes . If marijuana were legalized , it could become California 's No . 1 cash crop . Although fiscal year 2009 was grim for states , observers predict that 2010 will be even worse . `` The numbers that states are looking at in terms of their shortfalls is truly staggering . And all of this is happening in an environment where raising taxes is still pretty toxic , and it 's pretty explosive , '' said Sujit CanagaRetna , a senior fiscal analyst for the Council of State Governments . Instead of raising taxes , states are putting taxes and fees on specific items and services as they try to decrease their budget gaps . `` You see this blizzard of fees popping up all over the country and in very unusual places , '' CanagaRetna said . One of the more controversial ideas is to legalize the sale of marijuana , as proposed in a bill introduced in California 's state legislature by Democratic State Assemblyman Tom Ammiano this year . The bill proposed taxing pot by $ 50 per ounce . If legalized , marijuana could become California 's No . 1 cash crop , bringing in an estimated $ 1 billion a year in state taxes . The bill was shelved this session , but a revised version will probably be reintroduced . See budget woes , state-by-state » . Last week , Oakland became the first U.S. city to tax proceeds on medical marijuana . Other California cities have discussed a similar tax . This year , lawmakers in Georgia turned not to pot but to poles as a possible source of additional revenue . Republican state Sen. Jack Murphy 's proposed `` pole tax '' would have charged patrons of strip clubs a $ 5 entrance fee . The bill was not approved . Nineteen states have explored gambling-related proposals as ways balance their 2010 budgets , according to the National Council of State Legislatures . In Alabama , lawmakers considered bringing more bingo games to the state and legalizing slot machines , but the measure was not approved . Delaware 's Democratic Gov . Jack Markell signed legislation creating a sports lottery that legalizes single-game betting . Four professional sports leagues and the NCAA have filed a lawsuit over plans for the lottery , fearing that it threatens the integrity of the games . `` Basically , what we are dealing with is a larger issue here , which states have been grappling now for a few years , that is the shift in our economy away from manufacturing economy to a service-based economy , '' CanagaRetna said . He noted that when sales tax does n't apply , states are n't able to capture the economic activity . Here are a few of the more interesting ways states are trying to conserve -- and create -- some extra funds : . Can you be more creative than your state ? Leave your suggestions below .
States consider creative approaches to raise money . Georgia lawmakers proposed $ 5 charge for patrons of gentlemen 's clubs . Delaware approved sports lottery , but it 's getting pushback from pro leagues . Larger issue is shift from manufacturing to service-based economy , analyst says .