Springfield, IL (CAPITOL CITY NOW) – It’s possible an omnibus bill that its sponsor says would improve cannabis legislation will move in the final days of the 2026 spring session of the Illinois General Assembly.
Sponsoring State Rep. Will Guzzardi (pictured) (D-Chicago) told a House committee Tuesday strict regulations at the dawn of the legalization of recreational marijuana in Illinois in 2019 no longer fit in 2026. One, he says, is a requirement to have third-party security on hand during all hours a dispensary is open. Guzzardi said it’s a requirement no other category of business in Illinois must observe. As Guzzardi put it, if the guy from “Joe’s Security” calls in sick one day, the dispensary has lost an entire day of business.
Another facet of the legislation addresses hemp. “We created two onramps,” said Guzzardi. “One is the CBD Consumer Products Act. The basic gist here is that is if you want to keep selling CBD hemp products, non-intoxicating hemp products, we want to make it as easy as possible for you to register with the state. We propose a $200 registration fee.”
Guzzardi said the legislation is meant to address a couple of federal changes: the coming elimination of the category “intoxicating hemp,” per the Farm Bill; and the recent decision to downgrade the classification of medical cannabis from a Schedule I narcotic to Schedule III.
Guzzardi told the panel he is still working with opponents and other interests on amendments to fine-tune the bill.
Tuesday’s hearing was a subject-matter hearing with no vote on Guzzardi’s legislation.
