Weed in the Land of Lincoln: Legal Cannabis Comes to Illinois Jan. 1
Illinois’ cannabis legalization law is set to go into effect in January and will usher in what proponents hope is the most socially just legalization framework in the nation.
“We’ve spent decades decimating communities and destroying lives with the war on drugs,” said State Representative Kelly Cassidy. “For us it was really more about equity and ensuring that we are repairing harm.”
The state’s law allocates resources to minority communities and areas of the state that have been impacted the most by past crackdowns on marijuana. It also attempts to reduce the barrier to entry for entrepreneurs in hopes Illinois can lead the charge toward a more equitable cannabis industry, by giving them a leg up to compete for 75 licenses the state will begin to issue in May.
“This industry has the potential to be a generational wealth-building opportunity,” said Brian Scruggs, an entrepreneur in the sector.
Yet it remains to be seen if Illinois’ law will allow affected communities to capture a share of the cannabis wealth, and if it can, as Cassidy put it, address the “buffet of problems” associated with marijuana justice.
Strong U.S. sales helped General Motors increase its first-quarter net profit 19% over a year ago, leading the company to raise its full-year earnings guidance on expectations that people will keep buying new vehicles.
British regulators have blocked Microsoft’s $69 billion deal to buy video game maker Activision Blizzard over worries that it would stifle competition in the cloud gaming market.
Mortgage delinquencies rose to nearly 4% in the fourth quarter last year, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. Howard Dvorkin, certified financial planner and chairman of Debt.com, joined Cheddar News to provide tips on what to do if you can't make mortgage payments.
Dory Wiley, president and CEO of Commerce Street Holdings, joined Cheddar News to discuss Tuesday's trading as big tech is set to report earnings. This also followed First Republic Bank posting its latest results that prompted its stock to plummet after it said deposits fell.
Colorado is set to become the first state to sign a ‘right to repair’ law allowing farmers to fix their own equipment with a bill signing Tuesday afternoon by Democratic Gov. Jared Polis.
