The Highline Reporthttps://highlinereport.com/Midwest cannabis, straight up.en-usIllinois now allows dispensary drive-throughs and 2 a.m. closing, but cities like Peoria get a sayhttps://highlinereport.com/news/2026/10/illinois-dispensary-drive-through-hours-local-rules/https://highlinereport.com/news/2026/10/illinois-dispensary-drive-through-hours-local-rules/Thu, 29 Oct 2026 08:11:06 -0500Peoria kept a 10 p.m. closing time on Oct. 27 and put off drive-through and curbside votes until Nov. 10. Here's what the state law allows and where local rules come in.Monsaur OthmanStarting Nov. 12, Illinois treats hemp products over 0.4 mg of THC as cannabis, a month before the federal limithttps://highlinereport.com/news/2026/10/illinois-hemp-thc-rules-november-12/https://highlinereport.com/news/2026/10/illinois-hemp-thc-rules-november-12/Wed, 28 Oct 2026 10:53:54 -0500The new Illinois Hemp Act takes effect Nov. 12. Products above the line move to licensed dispensaries; lower-THC hemp products face new testing, label and packaging rules.Monsaur OthmanIllinois proposes rules for at least 45 social equity cannabis infuser licenses, with a lottery bonus for hemp businesseshttps://highlinereport.com/news/2026/10/illinois-social-equity-infuser-license-lottery-proposed-rules/https://highlinereport.com/news/2026/10/illinois-social-equity-infuser-license-lottery-proposed-rules/Wed, 28 Oct 2026 10:53:54 -0500Public comments on the Department of Agriculture's proposal run through Nov. 30. Here's who could apply, how the draw would work and what it would cost.Monsaur OthmanCannabis on the Nov. 3 ballot: Massachusetts votes on ending retail adult-use sales, and Idaho on who holds the power to legalizehttps://highlinereport.com/news/2026/10/cannabis-ballot-measures-november-3-massachusetts-idaho/https://highlinereport.com/news/2026/10/cannabis-ballot-measures-november-3-massachusetts-idaho/Mon, 19 Oct 2026 12:00:00 -0500Massachusetts Question 8 would repeal retail adult-use sales but keep small-amount possession legal. Idaho's HJR 4 would give only the legislature the power to legalize marijuana. Both are on the Nov. 3 ballot.Monsaur OthmanThe federal hemp redefinition arrives in two steps: synthetic cannabinoids on Nov. 12, the total-THC limits on Dec. 11https://highlinereport.com/news/2026/10/federal-hemp-definition-november-december-dates/https://highlinereport.com/news/2026/10/federal-hemp-definition-november-december-dates/Mon, 19 Oct 2026 12:00:00 -0500A September stopgap spending law split the effective date of the new federal hemp definition. Here's what takes effect when, and which bills would change it.Monsaur OthmanIllinois cannabis advertising rules, explained: what Section 55-20 bans and where ads can't gohttps://highlinereport.com/news/2026/10/illinois-cannabis-advertising-rules/https://highlinereport.com/news/2026/10/illinois-cannabis-advertising-rules/Mon, 19 Oct 2026 12:00:00 -0500The state's cannabis law bars health claims, leaf images, youth appeal and ads near schools or on public transit. It also exempts one category: educational messages.Monsaur OthmanIllinois cannabis expungement, explained: the three ways old records get clearedhttps://highlinereport.com/news/2026/10/illinois-cannabis-expungement-explained/https://highlinereport.com/news/2026/10/illinois-cannabis-expungement-explained/Mon, 19 Oct 2026 12:00:00 -0500The 2019 legalization law set up automatic expungement for some arrests, governor's pardons for some convictions, and court motions for others. The rules live in the Criminal Identification Act.Monsaur OthmanCan you grow cannabis at home in Illinois? Only registered medical patients can, and the law sets strict conditions.https://highlinereport.com/news/2026/10/illinois-cannabis-home-grow-rules/https://highlinereport.com/news/2026/10/illinois-cannabis-home-grow-rules/Mon, 19 Oct 2026 12:00:00 -0500Adult-use customers still can't home-grow. IDFPR says the June 2026 cannabis law lets registered patients buy seeds at licensed dispensaries.Monsaur OthmanHow much cannabis can you legally have in Illinois? The limits doubled in June.https://highlinereport.com/news/2026/10/illinois-cannabis-possession-limits/https://highlinereport.com/news/2026/10/illinois-cannabis-possession-limits/Mon, 19 Oct 2026 12:00:00 -0500A state law signed June 12 raised the possession limits for both residents and visitors. One of the state's own FAQ documents still lists the old numbers.Monsaur OthmanWhere you can't use cannabis in Illinois, and what the law says about carshttps://highlinereport.com/news/2026/10/illinois-cannabis-public-use-driving-rules/https://highlinereport.com/news/2026/10/illinois-cannabis-public-use-driving-rules/Mon, 19 Oct 2026 12:00:00 -0500Legal possession doesn't mean legal use everywhere. Section 10-35 of the state's cannabis law lists the places and situations the act doesn't protect.Monsaur OthmanIllinois cannabis taxes, explained: the three excise rates, local add-ons and the new medical exemptionhttps://highlinereport.com/news/2026/10/illinois-cannabis-taxes-explained/https://highlinereport.com/news/2026/10/illinois-cannabis-taxes-explained/Mon, 19 Oct 2026 12:00:00 -0500Illinois taxes adult-use cannabis by product type and THC level, then adds sales and local taxes. Since Sept. 10, patients buying at medical-licensed dispensaries skip two of those layers.Monsaur OthmanIllinois State Police ran 1,452 underage buy attempts in the last fiscal year. Six ended in a sale.https://highlinereport.com/news/2026/10/illinois-state-police-cannabis-compliance-checks/https://highlinereport.com/news/2026/10/illinois-state-police-cannabis-compliance-checks/Mon, 19 Oct 2026 12:00:00 -0500The state's annual cannabis report also counts 7,787 facility inspections and 996 violations. Here's what the police section says, and what it leaves out.Monsaur OthmanMinnesota will run medical and adult-use cannabis through one supply chain starting in Januaryhttps://highlinereport.com/news/2026/10/minnesota-cannabis-supply-chain-merger/https://highlinereport.com/news/2026/10/minnesota-cannabis-supply-chain-merger/Mon, 19 Oct 2026 12:00:00 -0500A 2026 state law takes effect Jan. 1, and the state's tracking vendor has set the dates when licensees' inventories will be combined.Monsaur OthmanOhio's new adult-use rules cap what goes in a single package. The daily purchase limits haven't changed.https://highlinereport.com/news/2026/10/ohio-adult-use-package-limits/https://highlinereport.com/news/2026/10/ohio-adult-use-package-limits/Mon, 19 Oct 2026 12:00:00 -0500The Division of Cannabis Control's package rule took effect in early October. Here are the caps by product type, and what stayed the same.Monsaur OthmanMedical cannabis moved to Schedule III in April. Illinois adult-use sales didn't. Here's the line, and what's still open.https://highlinereport.com/news/2026/10/schedule-iii-medical-cannabis-rule-illinois/https://highlinereport.com/news/2026/10/schedule-iii-medical-cannabis-rule-illinois/Mon, 19 Oct 2026 12:00:00 -0500We read the 10-page federal rule end to end. The short version: medical is in, adult-use is out, and the bigger rescheduling case is paused.Monsaur OthmanIllinois' FY26 cannabis report: more stores, more inspections, and a sales record measured in items, not dollarshttps://highlinereport.com/news/2026/10/illinois-cannabis-report-fy26/https://highlinereport.com/news/2026/10/illinois-cannabis-report-fy26/Sun, 18 Oct 2026 12:00:00 -0500The state's annual report is mostly a regulator's year in review. The useful parts for anyone watching the Illinois market are the inspection curve and what the sales table does and doesn't show.Monsaur OthmanKentucky now has a medical cannabis dispensary in all 11 licensing regions. The state's own list counts one fewer store.https://highlinereport.com/news/2026/10/kentucky-medical-cannabis-all-11-regions/https://highlinereport.com/news/2026/10/kentucky-medical-cannabis-all-11-regions/Sun, 18 Oct 2026 12:00:00 -0500The last gap on the map was the Mountain Region. It closed this week in Prestonsburg, but two of the state's own numbers don't quite agree.Monsaur Othman