Illinois Senate votes to legalize marijuana

The marijuana legislation is one of several controversial bills, along with sports betting and a capital-improvement bill, being considered as the end of the legislative session approaches.

7 PM UPDATE: The Illinois Senate has voted 38-17 to legalize the recreational use of marijuana.

5 PM UPDATE: A revised marijuana-legalization bill passed out of committee this afternoon, and the full Senate is expected to vote on the controversial and wide-ranging law later today.

The marijuana legislation is one of several controversial bills, along with sports betting and a capital-improvement bill, as the General Assembly heads toward the end of the legislative session later this week.

Legislators who have worked on marijuana legalization for more than two years have walked a tightrope, trying to address concerns ranging from law enforcement, which worried about a law too lax, to social-justice activists who worried that expungement didn’t go far enough. Meanwhile, businesses worried that the law would restrict their abilities to enforce policies that would meet insurance requirements.

With various tweaks—such as eliminating a home-grown provision, allowing state’s attorneys to challenge expungement of convictions for possession over 30 grams (the new limit allowed by law), and language about employees who are “on call”—they overcame most opposition. [Read More @Crain’s Chicago Business]