SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WTVO) — The State of Illinois said its new recreational marijuana industry generated over $10 million in sales in the first few days.

The Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation announced the totals on Monday, from sales counted January 1st through January 5th, which totaled $10,830,667.91.

According to the data, 271,169 transactions were handled over that same period.

“The successful launch of this new industry is a historic development for our state that will benefit the very communities that have been disproportionately impacted by the failed war on drugs,” said Toi Hutchinson, Senior Advisor to the Governor for Cannabis Control.

Twenty-five percent of the income will go toward impoverished communities that have a history of violence and systemic issues, i.e. primarily African-American communities, statewide.

According to state data, of the 700 applicants for the upcoming round of May 1st dispensary licenses, more than 600 identify as eligible for the Restore, Reinvest and Renew program.

“As we move into the next phase, the Pritzker administration is proud to see the robust interest in dispensary ownership from social equity applicants, and we encourage them to apply for $30 million in loans that we have available to reduce the capital barriers to entry,” Hutchinson said. “Unlike any state in the nation, Illinois has set the standard for what it means to legalize cannabis in a way that begins to right the wrongs of the past and gives new opportunity to those that have been left behind for far too long.”

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