MJBizMag January 2021 - 53

trial hemp in 2019, and she has backed
a lawsuit challenging the recreational
marijuana measure.
The legal challenge came after voters
passed the constitutional amendment.
The lawsuit argues in part that
the constitutional amendment was
improperly enacted because it created
a new article as opposed to adding a
section to an existing article.
The legalization campaign called
the argument " utterly insufficient " for
overturning a constitutional amendment
approved by voters.
Key Details: It's unclear how open
either market will be and whether the
legal challenge will delay the recreational
marijuana program's implementation.
The South Dakota Department of
Revenue already has announced it is
working with the state Department
of Health on a plan to implement a
commercial marijuana program.
Local jurisdictions can't ban medical
marijuana, but they will be able to limit
the number of establishments.
Physicians must certify a patient has a
debilitating condition to use MMJ, and
a dispensary cannot sell more than 3
ounces of cannabis to a qualified patient
during a 14-day period.
The recreational cannabis amendment
is short on specifics, only calling for
the state Revenue Department to issue
" enough licenses to substantially reduce
the illicit production and sale of marijuana
throughout the state. "
State regulators also are directed to
limit licenses " to prevent an undue concentration "
in any municipality.
Local jurisdictions may ban recreational
marijuana operations, but they cannot
prohibit the transportation of cannabis
products through their jurisdictions by
businesses licensed elsewhere in the state.
The amendment calls for adult-use
marijuana products to be taxed at 15%.
- Jeff Smith
ILLINOIS
Business-Friendliness Score:
4 out of 5 leaves
Illinois has a well-regulated marijuana
market and a large population. Recent
stumbling blocks in awarding 75 retail
licenses have cast doubt upon a program
initially hailed as the gold standard for
social equity. But hundreds of licenses
remain, leaving ample room for entrepreneurs
looking to put down roots in
the state.
Milestone: Problems and lawsuits have
delayed marijuana business licensing and
the state's social equity program, which
is aimed at getting more minorities and
victims of the war on drugs involved in
the industry.
Initiative: State officials are continuing
to roll out the adult-use market and
fulfill a social equity program.
Market Data: Marijuana Business
Daily projects that by 2024, Illinois
will reach $2.4 billion to $2.9 billion in
recreational cannabis sales and another
$310 million to $380 million in medical
marijuana sales.
Though Illinois caps the number of
business permits available, it remains
well below the allowable limit. Several
hundred additional licenses must still be
awarded, including 75 retail permits that
were supposed to have been handed out
in May but have been in limbo because
of the coronavirus and lawsuits filed by
jilted applicants.
As of December 2020, only 74 retail
and 21 cultivation licenses had been
handed out. In addition to the 75 new
retail permits, stakeholders are awaiting
news on when the application window
for another 110 retail licenses, 40 craft
cultivation permits and 40 manufacturing
licenses will open. All of those were
supposed to have been awarded by the
end of 2021, but it's unclear how the legal
fight over the 75 retail permits has upset
that timetable.
Companies in the Market: Multistate
operators have a major presence in
Illinois-including Cresco Labs, Green
Thumb Industries and Acreage Holdings-but
so do small businesses. The
stalled 75-license retail round is aimed at
providing an opportunity in the market
for entrepreneurs and small businesses
from communities disproportionately
impacted by the war on drugs.
Big Picture: Thanks to the state's large
population, Illinois is one of the hottest
markets to come online in recent years.
But legal wrangling, a delayed rollout
of the new adult-use retail licenses and
questions about the state's social equity
program have raised doubts about when
the market might reach its full potential.
In mid-November, an Illinois judge
threw out one legal challenge that sought
to halt the state's decision to allow many
applicants for the 75 hotly contested
January 2021 | mjbizdaily.com 53
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MJBizMag January 2021

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