Illinois Reaches New Adult-Use Cannabis Sales Record 

Adult-use cannabis sales in Illinois reached a new record last month at nearly $138 million — a 14% increase from November 2021, according to the Department of Financial and Professional Regulation outlined by the Chicago Tribune. The previous record was $128 million set last July, which analysts say was bolstered by the Lollapalooza music festival.

For the year, sales in the Land of Lincoln topped $1.38 billion — more than doubling totals from 2020, the first year of adult-use cannabis sales in the state. In 2021, the state’s 110 dispensaries sold more than 30 million cannabis products and nearly a third of Illinois’ cannabis sales were generated by out-of-state residents, the report says.

The state has not reported medical cannabis sales for December, but through 11 months of 2021, the sector had generated $362 million.

In 2020, combined medical and adult-use sales in Illinois totaled $1.03 billion, including $669 in adult-use sales and $366 in medical cannabis sales, the report says.

Last month, Gov. JB Pritzker (D) announced the state would inject $45 million from cannabis-derived taxes into Restore, Reinvest, and Renew (R3) grants, which are earmarked for communities most impacted by the war on drugs. The program is funded using 25% of adult-use cannabis tax revenues. In July, the state appropriated $31 million in funds collected from the state’s cannabis tax for the program.

Last summer, Illinois held three lotteries and awarded 185 new licenses with a social equity focus; however, a Cook County lawsuit challenging that process has delayed the rollout of the licensing round.