Revenues Amount To Nearly $11 Million For First 5 Days Of Legal Recreational Marijuana In Illinois

CHICAGO (CBS) -- Total sales for the first five days of legal recreational marijuana in Illinois have amounted to nearly $11 million.

The Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation announced that from Wednesday, Jan. 1 through Sunday, Jan. 5, recreational marijuana sales in Illinois amounted to $10,830.667.91.

Dispensaries recorded 271,169 transactions over the five days.

Where To Find Weed Near Me: Where To Find A Chicago Dispensary

The busiest day was New Year's Day – with 77,128 transactions and $3,176,256.71 in sales. The total number of transactions dropped each subsequent day, with revenues amounting to $1,189.252.18 on Sunday.

An initial tax revenue estimate will be available by the end of February, when the first tax payments from the dispensaries are due.

The state noted that as part of its focus on equity, 25 percent of cannabis sales tax revenues will support its Restore, Reinvest and Renew, or R3, program, which seeks to address the economic impact of disinvestment, violence, and historic overuse of the criminal justice system.

By contrast to Illinois, Michigan – which legalized recreational marijuana in December – only saw $3.1 million in sales in its first two weeks after legalization, according to MLive.com.

While Illinois has 46 dispensaries, Michigan only had 10 as of that point.

Meanwhile in Illinois, half of Chicago's dispensaries have sold out of legal weed.

For months, the state, growers and dispensaries have been issuing a warning about possible shortages, but it was overshadowed by the big buildup for recreational sales. These conditions could last for months.