On Jan. 1, Illinois became the 11th state to legalize recreational marijuana. Customers lined up for hours at HCI Alternatives in Collinsville, the only recreational pot shop currently operating in Metro East.
But legal highs can get expensive. The Illinois Department of Federal and Professional Regulation reported that marijuana sales in Illinois totaled $10.8 million in the first five days of January, averaging about $40 per transaction. According to marijuana price comparison platform Wikileaf, an eighth of weed (the most commonly purchased increment) costs more in Illinois than in nine other recreational states. Vermont was not ranked due to lack of data.
High taxes are part of the reason. In addition to standard state and local sales taxes, flowers with less than 35% THC are subject to a 10% tax, while edibles and other infused products are taxed at 20%. Products with a THC concentration greater than 35% are taxed at 25%, and cultivators selling to dispensaries face a 7% tax on gross receipts.
Read the full story and see a chart of the data on the St. Louis Business Journal.