Illinois dispensaries sold nearly $40 million dollars with of cannabis in the first 31 days of recreational cannabis sales, according to new numbers released last week.

The Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation announced the number on Feb. 3. Officials said the final total of $39,247,840.83 came from the sale of 972,045 cannabis products at licensed retailers across the state.

In the four states where recreational marijuana was legal by 2016, there was a small uptick in cannabis use disorder among adults and teens, and a general rise in use by adults, a new study suggests.

Researchers looking at data on cannabis use between 2008 and 2016 found that rates of problematic use among teens and adults over age 26 rose faster in states where recreational marijuana had been legalized than in other states, according to the report published in JAMA Psychiatry.

The potential tax revenue from the legalization of cannabis has been at the center of the argument between republicans and democrats. Proponents of legalization say states who haven’t legalized cannabis should look at the revenue generated from alcohol and other sin taxes as a window into what could be. 

An Alaska credit union plans to discontinue a pilot program to provide checking and savings accounts to marijuana-related businesses, an official said.

Credit Union 1 will end the program Aug. 30 because critical insurance coverage will no longer be available, The Anchorage Daily News reported Tuesday.

Credit Union 1 announced the program's launch in November to establish financial services for the primarily cash-operated industry.

Marijuana-related businesses cannot continue the program beyond a pilot phase without the liability coverage, said Credit Union 1 CEO James Wileman.

Alaska has moved closer to becoming the first in the country with statewide rules allowing onsite use of marijuana at specially authorized stores.

A memo from the state's Department of Law said it found no legal problems with the rules approved by marijuana regulators in December that will govern where and how onsite consumption could take place. The finding is a standard hurdle in the rule-making process.

The rules were recently sent to Lt. Gov. Kevin Meyer for his signature and are expected to take effect 30 days after they're signed. A Department of Law spokeswoman confirmed that Meyer's signature is a formality.

Alaska revenue officials say the state saw a drop in the amount of marijuana taxes owed after months of increases.

Anchorage television station KTVA reports marijuana cultivators owed the state just over $1.4 million in November, the latest month for which figures are available. That compares to $1.8 million October.

Kelly Mazzei of the Alaska Department of Revenue says the department is not sure why the figure dropped.

She says in general, the tax income line is trending upward.

The state began collecting tax revenue from marijuana cultivators in October 2017 and has collected more than $20 million.

The department reported November tax liability because some cultivators are on payment plans and not all revenue has come in.

Products containing CBD have been offered in stores and coffee shops in Alaska, but state regulators say CBD oil has not been approved to be used in food, drinks or edibles.

The Anchorage Daily News reports regulations governing CBD items are still being written, and the state has been warning residents to be cautious about what they ingest.

The state Division of Agriculture oversees all industrial hemp products, which includes CBD.

Division director Arthur Keyes says the industrial hemp bill that passed earlier this year put the state in the position to create a pilot program to regulate, but rules are not yet in place.

Another cannabis retailer is looking to enter the market in Fort St. John.

Glory Cannabis Company is looking to open on 100 Street at the site of the former Mastaro Sushi, and Wings and Things and Good Ole Dayz. The city has issued public notice seeking comment from nearby residents and businesses until Friday, January 4.

The company has already soft launched online and on social media, and bills itself as a family-owned and operated retailer based in Fort St. John.

The company is led by city residents Sheldon James and David Tran.

Credit Union 1 in Alaska announced in a press conference earlier this week that they will launch a pilot program that will offer banking services to cannabis related businesses.

“The credit union has always had out best success when we make our own magic and go our own way to serve our members, and especially to serve those who are in need of service or who are under served, and we see the MRB industry as being in that bucket, having had no access to financial service here in the state,” Credit Union 1 President and CEO James Wileman explained during the conference.