Cannabis sales are booming in Illinois

By Nina Zdinjak

One might wonder if Illinois lawmakers had any idea how much recreational cannabis sales would bring into the state coffers when they decided to legalize it less than two years ago. You probably had an idea as the state ended the past fiscal year with more than $ 317 million in cannabis taxes, according to 23 WIFR.

In May 2019, the General Assembly approved the Illinois Cannabis Regulation and Tax Act, which went into effect in January 2020. This makes Illinois the eleventh state to legalize recreational marijuana and the first in the nation to do so through a state legislature rather than a voting initiative.

Photo by Hillary Kladke / Getty Images

A brave step, you could say, but a smart one: Tax figures for only six months of sales for 2020 exceeded $ 52.7 million. Not even the global pandemic prevented the upturn in the continuously booming market.

RELATED: Despite COVID, cannabis sales are set to hit $ 20.4 billion in 2020

This May alone, cannabis sales in the state reached $ 116 million, up $ 1.5 million from April, according to data from the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation.

Distribution of taxes

Reported total revenue since the program began in January 2020 is more than $ 1.7 billion. Taxes, which vary depending on the potency of the cannabis product, can be up to 40%.

RELATED: Michigan Cannabis Sales Nearly $ 1 Billion In First Year Of Adult Sales

Tax revenue is divided in a number of ways, with more than a third going to the Illinois general revenue fund. Another 10% is accounted for by the state’s backlog of unpaid bills; 8% for law enforcement and 2% for cannabis-related public safety campaigns.

A quarter of every cannabis tax dollar goes to them Restore, Reinvest and Renew Program (R3) required by law, while local governments have the right to collect up to 3% of the additional sales tax.

This article originally appeared on Benzinga and was republished with permission.