Illinois collected a staggering $205.4 million in sales tax during the first year of cannabis legalization. That revenue came from almost $800 million in cannabis sales across the state. January 2021 was responsible for nearly $90 million of that, indicating an accelerated pace. This increase continues amidst an ongoing global health pandemic. Many lost their jobs or were directly impacted by Covid-19. This record-setting revenue is unprecedented, but bodes well for future years of increased state revenue from sales.

This $205 million comes from a 40 percent tax on marijuana sales. The tax depends on the potency of the product, as well as any additional local taxes placed on top of the state tax. Of this $205 million, a little over a third will go into the state’s general revenue fund. Ten percent goes to the backlog of the state’s unpaid bills. Eight percent will go to law enforcement. The last two percent will go to a cannabis public safety campaign. This will help citizens know how to be safe while consuming cannabis and what signs to look for if something does happen. 

The R3 Program

There’s another program that the state created during the legalization process, dubbed R3. It stands for Restore, Reinvest, and Renew. A quarter of every cannabis tax dollar goes into this program. Funding then returns to communities most affected by social injustice, the war on drugs, and general poverty. $31 million of the $205 million in sales tax is going to communities across the state.

Over 400 nonprofit organizations applied for this first round of funding and the state chose 80. These 80 focused on communities affected by gun violence, youth poverty, and re-entry limitations. This means helping those who are released from prison become members of their communities again instead of becoming repeat offenders.

Community Recipients

One organization is among those is set to receive around $809,000 in grant funding. It’s the East Springfield Community Center Commission in Springfield, Illinois. Executive Director Dameon Johnson is excited to start on his new program called Project RACE — Returning American Citizens Empowered. This re-entry program is designed for previously incarcerated citizens to learn various trade skills. It provides them with tools to better help themselves and their communities.

“We wanted to give some variety of programming for these individuals so first of all, they will have a choice in this, and second of all, if they don’t qualify for some sort of avenue, they have another one to pursue,” Director Johnson said. “We want to do our duty to help them be marketable to employers.”

Each organization that receives funding through R3 is required to report back where the funding went. Additionally, the report shows how funding helped create the results the organization reportedly used them for. This way the state can track the funding. Lawmakers can physically see the impact the grant funding is having in an organization or community . Organizations can then reapply if they are showing significant improvement. If not, funding will go to other organizations to help out in various ways. 

These programs have shown a lot of promise in Illinois. Many are hoping that other states will follow suit after seeing the success of the state’s first year. State sales should continue to climb in the coming months and years.

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