Every Badger State Resident Should Be Upset: Wisconsinites Paid Over $36M To Illinois In Cannabis Tax Revenue

As much as $36.1 million of Illinois' marijuana tax revenue in the fiscal year 2022 came from cannabis sales to Wisconsin residents, a recent memo from the nonpartisan Legislative Fiscal Bureau (LFB) revealed, writes WisPolitics.

Shortly after the memo was issued, Senate Democratic Leader Melissa Agard released the following statement:

“It should upset every Wisconsinite that our hard-earned tax dollars are going across the border to Illinois. This is revenue that could be going toward Wisconsin’s public schools, transportation infrastructure, and public safety. Instead, Illinois is reaping the benefits of Republican obstructionism and their prohibitionist stance on marijuana legalization.” 

Agrad was first to introduce the first full legalization bill in Wisconsin some 10 years ago. Last year, she testified against medical marijuana legislation, saying that it “does not go nearly far enough for cannabis reform or adequately address the harms of cannabis prohibition in Wisconsin.” She highlighted at the time that Wisconsinites are ready for marijuana reform, with some 61% supporting it. 

According to Agrad, new data on cannabis sales in Illinois confirm that “Republicans’ continued refusal to legalize marijuana is fiscally irresponsible. Wisconsinites paid more than $31 million – just in taxes – to Illinois in 2022. Wisconsin’s loss of potential revenue is even larger if we include taxes paid to Michigan, as well as Minnesota in the near future. Wisconsin is losing out on significant tax dollars that could be used to make our communities stronger, safer, and healthier.”

Some senators previously expressed concerns that urging to legalize recreational marijuana could poison the well for the medical program, resulting in a loss of GOP support.

However, Agard concluded, “I fully support Governor Evers’ 2025-25 biennial budget proposal to fully legalize marijuana for responsible adult use, and if Republicans choose to remove it from the budget, I will once again introduce my bill to achieve this goal. It’s high time we get this done for the betterment of our state and the people living here.”

Photo: Courtesy of Budding on Unsplash