Bill Text: IL HB5815 | 2025-2026 | 104th General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Amends the Cannabis Regulation and Tax Act. Creates the Illinois Freedom Program as a subprogram within the Restore, Reinvest, and Renew (R3) Program for the purpose of issuing direct cash payments to eligible individuals who have been disproportionately impacted by historical cannabis enforcement. Creates the Illinois Freedom Fund as a special fund in the State treasury. Provides that the creation and operation of the Illinois Freedom Program shall not reduce, reallocate, delay, or otherwise diminish the amount of cannabis tax revenue distributed to existing R3 Area grantees. Authorizes the Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority, in cooperation with the R3 Program Board, to adopt rules to implement and administer the Illinois Freedom Program and the Illinois Freedom Fund. Amends the State Finance Act. Provides for the transfer of certain amounts from the Criminal Justice Information Projects Fund to the Illinois Freedom Fund. Effective July 1, 2027.

Sponsorship: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2026-09-17 - Filed with the Clerk by Rep. La Shawn K. Ford [HB5815 Detail]

Download: Illinois-2025-HB5815-Introduced.html

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104TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2025 and 2026HB5815 Introduced , by Rep. La Shawn K. Ford SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
30 ILCS 105/5.1038 new
30 ILCS 105/6z-112
410 ILCS 705/10-42 new
410 ILCS 705/10-45
Amends the Cannabis Regulation and Tax Act. Creates the Illinois Freedom Program as a subprogram within the Restore, Reinvest, and Renew (R3) Program for the purpose of issuing direct cash payments to eligible individuals who have been disproportionately impacted by historical cannabis enforcement. Creates the Illinois Freedom Fund as a special fund in the State treasury. Provides that the creation and operation of the Illinois Freedom Program shall not reduce, reallocate, delay, or otherwise diminish the amount of cannabis tax revenue distributed to existing R3 Area grantees. Authorizes the Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority, in cooperation with the R3 Program Board, to adopt rules to implement and administer the Illinois Freedom Program and the Illinois Freedom Fund. Amends the State Finance Act. Provides for the transfer of certain amounts from the Criminal Justice Information Projects Fund to the Illinois Freedom Fund. Effective July 1, 2027.
LRB104 23294 JDS 39766 b
A BILL FOR
HB5815 LRB104 23294 JDS 39766 b
AN ACT concerning public health.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
Section 5. The State Finance Act is amended by adding
Section 5.1038 and by changing Sections 6z-112 as follows:
(30 ILCS 105/5.1038 new)
Sec. 5.1038. The Illinois Freedom Fund.
(30 ILCS 105/6z-112)
Sec. 6z-112. The Cannabis Regulation Fund.
(a) There is created the Cannabis Regulation Fund in the
State treasury, subject to appropriations unless otherwise
provided in this Section. All moneys collected under the
Cannabis Regulation and Tax Act shall be deposited into the
Cannabis Regulation Fund, consisting of taxes, license fees,
other fees, and any other amounts required to be deposited or
transferred into the Fund.
(b) Whenever the Department of Revenue determines that a
refund should be made under the Cannabis Regulation and Tax
Act to a claimant, the Department of Revenue shall submit a
voucher for payment to the State Comptroller, who shall cause
the order to be drawn for the amount specified and to the
person named in the notification from the Department of

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Revenue. This subsection (b) shall constitute an irrevocable
and continuing appropriation of all amounts necessary for the
payment of refunds out of the Fund as authorized under this
subsection (b).
(c) On or before the 25th day of each calendar month, the
Department of Revenue shall prepare and certify to the State
Comptroller the transfer and allocations of stated sums of
money from the Cannabis Regulation Fund to other named funds
in the State treasury. The amount subject to transfer shall be
the amount of the taxes, license fees, other fees, and any
other amounts paid into the Fund during the second preceding
calendar month, minus the refunds made under subsection (b)
during the second preceding calendar month by the Department.
The transfers shall be certified as follows:
(1) The Department of Revenue shall first determine
the allocations which shall remain in the Cannabis
Regulation Fund, subject to appropriations, to pay for the
direct and indirect costs associated with the
implementation, administration, and enforcement of the
Cannabis Regulation and Tax Act by the Department of
Revenue, the Department of State Police, the Department of
Financial and Professional Regulation, the Department of
Agriculture, the Department of Public Health, the
Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity, and the
Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority.
(2) After the allocations have been made as provided

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in paragraph (1) of this subsection (c), of the remainder
of the amount subject to transfer for the month as
determined in this subsection (c), the Department shall
certify the transfer into the Cannabis Expungement Fund
1/12 of the fiscal year amount appropriated from the
Cannabis Expungement Fund for payment of costs incurred by
State courts, the Attorney General, State's Attorneys,
civil legal aid, as defined by Section 15 of the Public
Interest Attorney Assistance Act, and the Department of
State Police to facilitate petitions for expungement of
Minor Cannabis Offenses pursuant to Public Act 101-27, as
adjusted by any supplemental appropriation, plus
cumulative deficiencies in such transfers for prior
months.
(3) After the allocations have been made as provided
in paragraphs (1) and (2) of this subsection (c), the
Department of Revenue shall certify to the State
Comptroller and the State Treasurer shall transfer the
amounts that the Department of Revenue determines shall be
transferred into the following named funds according to
the following:
(A) 2% shall be transferred to the Drug Treatment
Fund to be used by the Department of Human Services
for: (i) developing and administering a scientifically
and medically accurate public education campaign
educating youth and adults about the health and safety

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risks of alcohol, tobacco, illegal drug use (including
prescription drugs), and cannabis, including use by
pregnant women; and (ii) data collection and analysis
of the public health impacts of legalizing the
recreational use of cannabis. Expenditures for these
purposes shall be subject to appropriations.
(B) 8% shall be transferred to the Local
Government Distributive Fund and allocated as provided
in Section 2 of the State Revenue Sharing Act. The
moneys shall be used to fund crime prevention
programs, training, and interdiction efforts,
including detection, enforcement, and prevention
efforts, relating to the illegal cannabis market and
driving under the influence of cannabis.
(C) 25% shall be transferred to the Criminal
Justice Information Projects Fund to be used, except
as provided in subparagraph (C-5), for the purposes of
the Restore, Reinvest, and Renew Program to address
economic development, violence prevention services,
re-entry services, youth development, and civil legal
aid, as defined by Section 15 of the Public Interest
Attorney Assistance Act. The Restore, Reinvest, and
Renew Program shall address these issues through
targeted investments and intervention programs and
promotion of an employment infrastructure and capacity
building related to the social determinants of health

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in impacted community areas. Expenditures for these
purposes shall be subject to appropriations.
(C-5) Beginning on August 1, 2027, on or before
the first day of each month, an amount equal to the
difference, if any, between the amount deposited into
the Criminal Justice Information Projects Fund
pursuant to subparagraph (C) in the immediately
preceding calendar month and the amount deposited into
the Criminal Justice Information Projects Fund
pursuant to subparagraph (C) during the same month in
the base year shall be transferred from the Criminal
Justice Information Projects Fund to the Illinois
Freedom Fund for the purpose of administering the
Illinois Freedom Program under Section 10-42 of the
Cannabis Regulation and Tax Act. The Department of
Revenue shall certify to the State Comptroller and the
State Treasurer the amounts to be transferred under
this subparagraph (C-5), and the State Comptroller
shall order transferred and the State Treasurer shall
transfer those certified amounts from the Criminal
Justice Information Projects Fund to the Illinois
Freedom Fund. As used in this subparagraph (C-5),
"base year" means the 12-month period beginning on
July 1, 2026 and ending on June 30, 2027.
(D) 20% shall be transferred to the Department of
Human Services Community Services Fund, to be used to

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address substance abuse and prevention and mental
health concerns, including treatment, education, and
prevention to address the negative impacts of
substance abuse and mental health issues, including
concentrated poverty, violence, and the historical
overuse of criminal justice responses in certain
communities, on the individual, family, and community,
including federal, State, and local governments,
health care institutions and providers, and
correctional facilities. Expenditures for these
purposes shall be subject to appropriations.
(E) 10% shall be transferred to the Budget
Stabilization Fund.
(F) 35%, or any remaining balance, shall be
transferred to the General Revenue Fund.
As soon as may be practical, but no later than 10 days
after receipt, by the State Comptroller of the transfer
certification provided for in this subsection (c) to be given
to the State Comptroller by the Department of Revenue, the
State Comptroller shall direct and the State Treasurer shall
transfer the respective amounts in accordance with the
directions contained in such certification.
(d) On July 1, 2019 the Department of Revenue shall
certify to the State Comptroller and the State Treasurer shall
transfer $5,000,000 from the Compassionate Use of Medical
Cannabis Fund to the Cannabis Regulation Fund.

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(e) Notwithstanding any other law to the contrary and
except as otherwise provided in this Section, this Fund is not
subject to sweeps, administrative charge-backs, or any other
fiscal or budgetary maneuver that would in any way transfer
any amounts from this Fund into any other fund of the State.
(f) The Cannabis Regulation Fund shall retain a balance of
$1,000,000 for the purposes of administrative costs.
(g) In Fiscal Year 2024 the allocations in subsection (c)
of this Section shall be reviewed and adjusted if the General
Assembly finds there is a greater need for funding for a
specific purpose in the State as it relates to Public Act
101-27.
(Source: P.A. 101-27, eff. 6-25-19; 102-558, eff. 8-20-21.)
Section 10. The Cannabis Regulation and Tax Act is amended
by changing Section 10-45 and by adding Section 10-42 as
follows:
(410 ILCS 705/10-42 new)
Sec. 10-42. Illinois Freedom Program.
(a) The Illinois Freedom Program is established as a
subprogram within the Restore, Reinvest, and Renew Program for
the purpose of issuing direct cash payments to eligible
individuals who have been disproportionately impacted by
historical cannabis enforcement.
(b) The Illinois Freedom Program shall be financed

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exclusively from moneys appropriated from the Illinois Freedom
Fund.
(c) The Illinois Freedom Fund is hereby created as a
special fund in the State treasury and shall consist of the
incremental growth in cannabis tax revenue that is allocated
to it under subparagraph (C-5) of paragraph (3) of subsection
(c) of Section 6z-112 of the State Finance Act. Moneys in the
Illinois Freedom Fund shall be used exclusively for issuing
direct cash payments to eligible individuals as described in
subsection (a).
(d) The creation and operation of the Illinois Freedom
Program shall not reduce, reallocate, or otherwise diminish
the amount of cannabis tax revenue distributed to R3 Area
grantees under Section 10-40 relative to the amounts
distributed to those grantees in the base year, as defined in
subparagraph (C-5) of paragraph (3) of subsection (c) of
Section 6z-112 of the State Finance Act. The Restore,
Reinvest, and Renew Program Board shall ensure that the
distribution of funds to R3 Area grantees is neither reduced
below base year levels nor delayed as a result of the Illinois
Freedom Program.
(e) The Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority,
in cooperation with the Restore, Reinvest, and Renew Program
Board, may adopt rules as necessary to implement and
administer the Illinois Freedom Program and the Illinois
Freedom Fund in a manner that is consistent with the funding

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protections established in this Section.
(410 ILCS 705/10-45)
Sec. 10-45. Cannabis Equity Commission.
(a) The Cannabis Equity Commission is created and shall
reflect the diversity of the State of Illinois, including
geographic, racial, and ethnic diversity. The Cannabis Equity
Commission shall be responsible for the following:
(1) Ensuring that equity goals in the Illinois
cannabis industry, as stated in Section 10-40, are met.
(2) Tracking and analyzing minorities in the
marketplace.
(3) Ensuring that revenue is being invested properly
into R3 areas under Section 10-40 and that expenditures
under the Illinois Freedom Fund comply with the baseline
funding protections established in Section 10-42.
(4) Recommending changes to make the law more
equitable to communities harmed the most by the war on
drugs.
(5) Creating Create standards to protect true social
equity applicants from predatory businesses.
(b) The Cannabis Equity Commission's ex officio members
shall, within 4 months after March 23, 2021 (the effective
date of Public Act 101-658), convene the Commission to appoint
a full Cannabis Equity Commission and oversee, provide
guidance to, and develop an administrative structure for the

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Cannabis Equity Commission. The ex officio members are:
(1) The Governor, or his or her designee, who shall
serve as chair.
(2) The Attorney General, or his or her designee.
(3) The Director of Commerce and Economic Opportunity,
or his or her designee.
(4) The Director of Public Health, or his or her
designee.
(5) The Director of Corrections, or his or her
designee.
(6) The Secretary of Financial and Professional
Regulation, or his or her designee.
(7) The Director of Agriculture, or his or her
designee.
(8) The Executive Director of the Illinois Criminal
Justice Information Authority, or his or her designee.
(9) The Secretary of Human Services, or his or her
designee.
(10) A member of the Senate, designated by the
President of the Senate.
(11) A member of the House of Representatives,
designated by the Speaker of the House of Representatives.
(12) A member of the Senate, designated by the
Minority Leader of the Senate.
(13) A member of the House of Representatives,
designated by the Minority Leader of the House of

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Representatives.
(c) Within 90 days after the ex officio members convene,
the following members shall be appointed to the Commission by
the chair:
(1) Four community-based providers or community
development organization representatives who provide
services to treat violence and address the social
determinants of health, or promote community investment,
including, but not limited to, services such as job
placement and training, educational services, workforce
development programming, and wealth building. No more than
2 community-based organization representatives shall work
primarily in Cook County. At least one of the
community-based providers shall have expertise in
providing services to an immigrant population.
(2) Two experts in the field of violence reduction.
(3) One male who has previously been incarcerated and
is over the age of 24 at the time of appointment.
(4) One female who has previously been incarcerated
and is over the age of 24 at the time of appointment.
(5) Two individuals who have previously been
incarcerated and are between the ages of 17 and 24 at the
time of appointment.
As used in this subsection (c), "an individual who has
been previously incarcerated" has the same meaning as defined
in paragraph (2) of subsection (e) of Section 10-40.

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(Source: P.A. 104-417, eff. 8-15-25.)
Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect July 1,
2027.