Illinois reports nearly $35 million worth of recreational marijuana sold in second month of sales

Marijuana regulators in Illinois said Wednesday that legal dispensaries sold nearly $35 million worth of recreational pot during the second month of catering to retail customers.

The Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation said preliminary figures for the month of February indicate recreational marijuana sales totaled $34,805,072.01, down roughly 11% from January.

Illinois residents were responsible for the bulk of the purchases last month, spending roughly $25.6 million on recreational marijuana at the state’s licensed pot shops between Feb. 1-29, the department said.

Out-of-state customers spent nearly $9.2 million on recreational marijuana during that same span, meanwhile, or roughly 26% of total sales reported, according to the department.

“These numbers show there continues to be a strong demand across the state as the most equity-centric cannabis program in the country moves forward in Illinois,” said Toi Hutchinson, senior advisor for cannabis control to Governor J.B. Pritzker, a Democrat.

“As the adult-use cannabis industry continues to grow, so will the number of opportunities for consumers and entrepreneurs alike — especially those from communities who suffered the most during the failed war on drugs,” she said in a statement.

Illinois legalized recreational marijuana effective Jan. 1, making it the latest of 11 states and counting to let adults possess and consume cannabis for non-medicinal purposes.

Nine of those states — Alaska, California, Colorado, Illinois, Massachusetts, Michigan, Nevada, Oregon and Washington state — also permit adults to purchase recreational marijuana from licensed dispensaries.

Marijuana regulators in Illinois previously reported that state dispensaries sold around $39.2 million worth of recreational pot during January, the first month of retail sales.

None of the monthly figures include taxes collected, which Illinois previously estimated will generate roughly $57 million in revenue for the state during the first year of sales.