News, Statements, Social Equity
CHICAGO – A collective of predominately Black, brown and women social equity cannabis license holders joined Ald. Gilbert Villegas (36th Ward) at City Hall today to urge members of the Chicago City Council to reject attempts to legitimize intoxicating hemp, which is endangering consumers and undermining the state’s legal cannabis market, threatening investments in minority communities.
This comes Ald. William Hall (6th Ward) explores proposals to tax hemp-derived intoxicants sold in Chicago. Such an effort would legitimize intoxicating hemp products in exchange for a quick cash grab by the city. Instead of setting up separate rules for Chicago, city officials should work with the General Assembly to implement a statewide solution that regulates intoxicating hemp in a similar manner as legal cannabis.
“We need to take a moment to pause and reassess the legitimate market that already exists for cannabis and apply similar guardrails and guidelines to the grey market that hemp dominates,” said Ald. Villegas. “Many questions need to be answered and any form of incentivizing its use for a quick payout needs to be severely reconsidered. The city should work with state officials to outline a more structured, fair, and safe way of moving forward.”
Given the complexity of the state’s legal cannabis system – with more than 12 agencies overseeing the cannabis market – it is unlikely the city can meaningfully oversee intoxicating hemp on its own. There are also serious questions about how much money would really be captured, because legitimizing intoxicating hemp would only to cannibalize existing cannabis tax revenues. To see additional cannabis revenues to support city operations, the city should consider streamlining internal processes to make it easier for licensed cannabis business to locate in Chicago.
When Illinois launched its adult use cannabis program five years ago, it came with the promise of providing opportunities to those who have been disproportionately impacted by the War on Drugs. That included expungements for cannabis convictions, investing in violence prevention and youth development programs, and creating opportunities to participate in the legal cannabis industry. But just as many of these businesses are finally becoming operational, with more continuing to struggle, they are being pushed aside in favor of a gray market selling intoxicating hemp products.
“We are proud to operate in Illinois and want to continue to grow and invest in our businesses, but doing so is becoming increasingly unsustainable due in large part to the unregulated grey market,” said Akele Parnell, CEO of Umi Farms. “Without meaningful efforts to rein in the intoxicating hemp market, officials are turning away from the promise of our legal cannabis market and the investments made by small minority businesses owners across Illinois. It’s time Illinois lived up to the promises it made.”
Licensed cannabis businesses regulated by the state have gone through countless steps to ensure they are operating safely and adhering to detailed rules—including product quality control and testing, a strict ban on sales to anyone under 18, and numerous zoning guidelines such as those that prohibit dispensaries from opening next to schools. Intoxicating hemp products should be held to the same strict standards.
“As responsible cannabis license holders, we have invested significant resources, time, and effort to comply with the regulations and standards,” said Ted Parks, Executive Director of the Independent Third-Party Carriers Association and owner of Moetta’s Transport. “We as an industry adhere to strict protocols for cultivation, processing, and distribution to ensure the safety and well-being of our consumers and the integrity of this industry. The hemp industry has none of these same rules and no one holds them accountable. Why should they be allowed to write their own rules?”
Not only are those selling intoxicating hemp able to bypass strict requirements to operate a dispensary, but their market is also profiting from our communities without giving back. Illinois sets aside 25 percent of adult-use cannabis tax revenue to fund the Restore, Reinvest, Renew grant program. To date, roughly $250 million in R3 grants have been awarded to support legal aid, economic development, re-entry, violence prevention and youth development programs in communities impacted by the War on Drugs. The unregulated market supports no such programs.
“Cannabis operators are proud of the programs our revenue supports, including legal aid, economic development, reentry programs, and violence prevention,” said Ambrose Jackson, Chairman and CEO of Parkway Dispensary and The 1937 Foundation. “This work benefits our entire city, lessening the dependency on public support. This is the real-world benefit of our state’s cannabis program, and it’s missing from the unregulated hemp market.”
News, Statements
SPRINGFIELD – The Cannabis Business Association of Illinois released the following statement regarding efforts to regulate intoxicating hemp products:
“We are disappointed by the House’s failure to pass common-sense regulations for hemp consumer products such as CBD while halting the sale of dangerous synthetic hemp-derived intoxicants like delta-8 that are sickening children and adults,” said Tiffany Chappell Ingram, Executive Director of the Cannabis Business Association of Illinois. “Without action, the unregulated intoxicating hemp market will continue to operate with no rules or regulations guiding the production or sale of these products. This leaves consumers at risk and undermines the state’s carefully regulated cannabis market, particularly social equity cannabis license holders who face extensive rules and regulations while those selling intoxicating hemp continue to get off easy. We thank Gov. Pritzker for his strong leadership, as well as lawmakers in both chambers who championed this issue. We remain committed to working with the administration and legislators to rein in this unregulated market, empower consumers, protect public health and ensure our state’s legal cannabis industry can reach its full potential.”
News, Statements
SPRINGFIELD – The Cannabis Business Association of Illinois is celebrating the five year anniversary of the legalization of adult use cannabis, which has created tens of thousands of jobs and generated billions of dollars in sales, much of which has been re-invested in communities impacted by the War on Drugs.
Adult use cannabis sales first began on January 1, 2020 and now account for nearly 80 percent of cannabis sales in Illinois, with the remainder sold for medical use. Statewide, there are now more than 230 dispensaries operating across Illinois, including 100 dispensaries operated by social equity license holders. There are also licensed cultivators, infusers, craft growers, transporters and numerous ancillary cannabis businesses that support the industry.
In Fiscal Year 2024 alone, adult-use cannabis sales generated over $457 million in state tax revenue. Tax dollars generated by those sales help support numerous state initiatives, including the Restore Reinvest Renew grant program, which supports organizations that work on violence prevention, economic development, youth development and citizen reentry in communities impacted by the War on Drugs.
Notably, Illinois has led the nation on expungements for cannabis offenses, recognizing the negative impact of cannabis criminalization, especially in Black communities. Illinois’ efforts led to pardons of federal marijuana convictions and calls for other states to pardon those convicted for marijuana possession at the state level.
“Like all new programs, there have been challenges in establishing the state’s legal cannabis market, but there have also been great successes,” said Tiffany Chappell Ingram, Executive Director of the Cannabis Business Association of Illinois. “While there is more that can be done to strengthen the industry in Illinois, we have come a long way in five years, especially when it comes to reducing the stigma around cannabis. We look forward to working collaboratively with Gov. JB Pritzker and members of the General Assembly to ensure the state’s cannabis industry can realize its full potential.”
Key areas of opportunity include:
INCREASING DIVERSITY
Illinois’ cannabis program is unique in that it centers diversity and equity. While the number of women and minority owners has increased in recent years, more can be done. A major hurdle is securing capital, especially for social equity license holders. In the absence of federal banking standards for the cannabis industry, the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO) has grant and loan programs to support small businesses, but it’s not sufficient to support needed growth. A Disparity Study conducted by the Cannabis Regulation Oversight Office recommended broadening the availability of financing through DCEO’s Cannabis Business Development Fund, which serves as an important revenue stream for social equity license holders.
REGULATE INTOXICATING HEMP
The proliferation of intoxicating hemp products is undermining Illinois’ carefully crafted legal cannabis market. State licensed cannabis dispensaries adhere to strict protocols for cultivation, processing, and distribution to ensure the safety and well-being of consumers. The unregulated market faces no such rules. By evading regulatory oversight and taxation, unlicensed operators can undercut prices and unfairly compete with legitimate cannabis businesses, undermining the economic viability of the cannabis industry. Lawmakers can act by passing HB4293, which will license and regulate hemp consumer products such as CBD while banning the sale of dangerous synthetic hemp-derived intoxicants like Delta-8 that are sickening children and adults.
LOWERING TAXES
Cannabis taxes in Illinois are among the highest in the nation. As neighboring states legalize adult use cannabis, Illinois consumers are crossing state lines to purchase cannabis in states like Missouri and Michigan where lower tax rates result in more affordable products. Illinois should focus on ways to lower taxes to keep sales within our state’s economy without sacrificing the support that the industry provides to so many state programs.
REGULATORY CHANGES
More than a dozen agencies regulate the cannabis industry in Illinois, creating a burdensome patchwork of policies and procedures. This can be streamlined by creating one body charged with oversight of the industry. Other changes should focus on reducing barriers of entry to employment; adoption of alcohol-model for vendor non-payment, which would require dispensaries to pay growers for product within 30 days or deliveries would be suspended; as well as other changes related to regulations on growing operations.
EXPANDING ACCESS
Too many consumers do not have easy access to legal cannabis dispensaries. Focus should be placed on expanding access to consumers, including licensing dispensaries in cannabis deserts, allowing curbside pickup and drive thru purchases for adult use cannabis, as well as allowing medical patients to make purchases at any licensed dispensary. Consideration should also be given to streamlining licensing procedures to expand lounges allowing for social consumption.
News, Statements
The Cannabis Business Association of Illinois released the following statement regarding
Gov. JB Pritzker’s call for regulations on intoxicating hemp products:
“A federal loophole has allowed for the proliferation of intoxicating hemp products such as Delta 8, which
use potentially harmful chemicals to alter the composition of hemp to get consumers high. This is happening
outside the structure of the state’s legal cannabis industry, meaning there are no rules or regulations guiding
the production or sale of these products – which the Federal Drug Administration warns have not been
evaluated for ‘safe use in any context.’ This not only leaves consumers at risk, it also undermines the state’s
carefully regulated cannabis market, particularly social equity cannabis license holders who face extensive
rules and regulations to operate while those selling intoxicating hemp continue to get off easy,” said Tiffany
Chappell Ingram, Executive Director of the Cannabis Business Association of Illinois.
“We applaud Gov. JB Pritzker’s call to protect consumers and rein in this gray market. We urge lawmakers
to take swift action, as Illinois is already falling behind other states that have adopted meaningful regulations.
Senate Majority Leader Kimberly A. Lightford, House Assistant Majority Leader Kam Buckner and House
Assistant Majority Leader Barbara Hernandez have been strong legislative champions, and we look forward
to working collaboratively to put in place a measure that will empower consumers, protect public health and
help ensure our state’s legal cannabis industry can reach its full potential.”
News, Statements
Tiffany Chappell Ingram, Executive Director of the Cannabis Business Association of Illinois, released the following statement regarding a proposal put forth by Sixth Ward Ald. William Hall, which would legitimize the sale of dangerous intoxicating hemp-derived products such as Delta-8 in Chicago:
“Unscrupulous sellers have taken advantage of a federal loophole to profit off the sale of intoxicating hemp-derived products, using chemicals to alter the composition of hemp to create a wide-range of products that get consumers high. This is happening outside the structure of the state’s legal cannabis industry, meaning there are no rules or regulations guiding the production or sale of these products – some of which have been found to contain fentanyl. It’s little wonder children and adults are getting sick from these products, which the FDA has warned have not been evaluated for ‘safe use in any context.’
“While we appreciate efforts to rein in this gray market, we are concerned the proposal put forth today by Ald. Hall would legitimize dangerous products in exchange for a quick cash grab by the city. There’s a reason other municipalities across Illinois have banned these products, and Chicago should take heed. Those selling intoxicating products should not be able to draft their own rules to the detriment of consumers and licensed cannabis operators. Failing to put in place stringent regulations on these products would be particularly harmful to social equity cannabis license holders, who face extensive rules and regulations to operate while others continue to get off easy.
“There is a way to do this correctly. We do not have to sacrifice consumer safety for revenue generation. We can live up to the promises made to our communities impacted by the War on Drugs, including social equity cannabis licenses holders. But it requires real regulation and oversight of the hemp industry, not a rubber stamp. We’re glad this conversation is taking place, and look forward to working collaboratively with Ald. Hall, City Council members and stakeholders to find a comprehensive solution.”
News
SPRINGFIELD – The Cannabis Business Association of Illinois released the following statement after President Joe Biden announced his administration took a key step forward to reclassify marijuana from a Schedule I to a Schedule III drug:
“We applaud the Biden administration’s decision to reclassify marijuana under the Controlled Substances Act as it affirms what our group advocates for – safe, legal, and community-building uses of cannabis. We look forward to evaluating the proposed rules, which would reclassify marijuana from a Schedule I drug on par with heroin to a less dangerous Schedule III drug,” said Tiffany Chappell Ingram, Executive Director of the Cannabis Business Association of Illinois. “In the decades since marijuana was erroneously categorized, Black and Brown communities have experienced countless repercussions stemming from the war on drugs. While this decision cannot reverse that damage, it does recognize the medical benefits of cannabis and enhances the viability of marijuana companies, including allowing for the same expense deductions enjoyed by other businesses. This is an important step in the right direction for the cannabis industry and our society at large, and we hope this continues to pave the path towards federal legalization.”
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