CHICAGO (AP) – Illinois dispensaries are staffing up and remodeling in preparation for the legalization of recreational marijuana.
The General Assembly approved the marijuana legislation last month and it now awaits a signature from Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker. He plans to sign it and Illinois will become the 11th state, along with the District of Columbia, to permit recreational use.
Under the new law, adults could buy and possess up to one ounce of marijuana for personal use.
The measure would let the state’s 55 medical marijuana dispensaries submit applications to set up two more dispensaries to sell marijuana for recreational use. Companies already in the medical marijuana market said expansion to meet recreational needs could result in a hiring boom.
If approved, sales would start Jan. 1, 2020.
