IF YOU HAVE TIME, there are a large number of marijuana bills that are being heard in committee and many of them have no witness slips filed in opposition. Note: Most are OPPOSE, but not all.

It appears that state lawmakers have decided to go for broke. Much of what’s below was included in the original language of the “recreational” marijuana bill, but was removed to gather the votes needed to pass the bill, with the intention of adding it at a later time. They are intent on making a bad situation even worse.

We are very grateful that so many have taken time to file witness slips in the past few weeks. We have heard that they are having an impact.

Thank you for doing what you can!

Instructions:

-Fill out your name, address, email and phone number. Leave everything else blank or put self.
-Highlight “Opponent or Proponent” and “Record of Appearance Only.”
-Check Terms of Agreement and click Create Slip.

HB 144: a county or municipality may issue temporary event licenses that will allow for the sale and consumption of cannabis or cannabis-infused products and for the sale of cannabis paraphernalia at such temporary events, clubs, or tours. OPPOSE  Click HERE to file a witness slip.

HB 312: establishes rules pertaining to the issuance of cannabis delivery licenses only to qualified “social equity applicants.” OPPOSE  Click HERE to file a witness slip.

HB 314: A county may not permit the sale of adult-use cannabis in any unincorporated area that is within 1.5 miles of a municipality that has prohibited the sale of cannabis. SUPPORT  Click HERE to file a witness slip.

HB 715: “Bring Your Own Cannabis” to a public location. OPPOSE  Click HERE to file a witness slip.

HB 3306: Increases square footage for growing facilities, increases number of grower licenses, removes language that growers be 1,500 feet from each other; withholds  Cannabis Cultivation Privilege Tax for 2 years after license is awarded. OPPOSE  Click HERE to file a witness slip.

HB 4097: Allows more than one license per grower, adds 60 additional licenses, withholds  Cannabis Cultivation Privilege Tax for 2 years after license is awarded. OPPOSE  Click HERE to file a witness slip.

HB 4144: allows an applicant to resubmit information that was deficient in his original grower license due to COVID. OPPOSE  Click HERE to file a witness slip.

HB 4194: as a condition of a marijuana cultivation center’s license renewal, it must set aside a certain amount of THC oil to be made available to infuser organizations. (THC is the psychoactive ingredient that make a person high.) OPPOSE  Click HERE to file a witness slip.

HB 4195: allows up to 3 growers, an infuser organization, a cultivation center, and a dispensing organization to share a premises. OPPOSE  Click HERE to file a witness slip.

HB 4298: a Conditional Adult Use Dispensing Organization License to an applicant that is 51% owned and controlled by at least one qualified individual with a disability. OPPOSE  Click HERE to file a witness slip.

HB 4309: 40% of ancillary services of a cultivation center or dispensing organization must be certified under the Business Enterprise for Minorities, Women, and Persons with Disabilities Act. OPPOSE  Click HERE to file a witness slip.

HB 4318: removes requirement that an adult-use cannabis container in a vehicle be odor-proof and child resistant. OPPOSE  Click HERE to file a witness slip.

HB 5123: any person under 21 who uses cannabis or is in possession of cannabis is guilty of a Class A Misdemeanor rather than a civil law violation.  SUPPORT  Click HERE to file a witness slip.

HB 5523: a county or municipality may issue temporary event licenses that will allow for the sale and consumption of cannabis or cannabis-infused products and for the sale of cannabis paraphernalia at such temporary events, clubs, or tours. OPPOSE  Click HERE to file a witness slip.

HB 5570: establishes rules pertaining to the issuance of cannabis delivery licenses only to qualified “social equity applicants.” OPPOSE  Click HERE to file a witness slip.

HB 5580: fees will be waived for “social equity applicants.” OPPOSE  Click HERE to file a witness slip.

The SAFE Banking Act is a federal bill that would give the “medical” and recreational marijuana industries (and cartels) access to banking privileges, such as checking and savings accounts, credit lines and loans, enabling and legitimizing what has been an all cash trade to make real estate deals, payroll, insurance and operating costs much easier.

Furthermore, this could foreseeably grant them a listing in the stock exchanges, which would give them an opportunity to raise a great deal of money, ultimately helping these havoc-producing, soul-destroying companies to open more retail businesses, purchase more land to grow the drug, and expand into more markets.

The bill has passed in the Democratic-controlled U.S. House of Representatives by a vote of 321-103, despite the fact that marijuana is classified as an illegal Schedule 1 Drug “with no currently accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse.”

Sixteen of the 18 members of the Illinois Congressional Delegation voted “yea,” including U.S. Representatives: Bobby Rush (D-1^st Dist.), Robin Kelly (D-2^nd Dist.), Daniel Lipinski (D-3^rd Dist.), Jesus Garcia (D-4^th Dist.), Mike Quigley (5^th Dist.), Sean Casten (D-6^th Dist.), Danny Davis (D-7^th Dist.), Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-8^th Dist.), Jan Schakowsky (D-9^th Dist.), Brad Schneider (D-10^th Dist.), Bill Foster (D-11^th Dist.), Mike Bost (R-12^th Dist.), Rodney David (R-13^th Dist.), Lauren Underwood (D-14^th Dist.), Adam Kinzinger (R-16^th Dist.) and Cheri Bustos (D-17^th Dist.).

The SAFE Banking Act would effectively neuter federal law to empower and facilitate the marijuana industry.  “We have patients and other consumers looking to order and pay online, whether it is for pickup or delivery,” says Dina Rollman, senior vice president for regulatory and government affairs at Green Thumb Industries. “With cannabis businesses being deemed essential in so many states during the COVID-19 crisis, the need for the SAFE Banking Act is greater than ever.” (Source: “With crisis, cannabis firms see a shot to get banking relief” Crain’s Chicago Business, 5/1/20) 

U.S. Representative Ed Perlmutter (D-Colorado) is anxious to help the marijuana industry. He plans to include the SAFE Banking Act in upcoming COVID-relief legislation, another stimulus bill. In addition to assisting the marijuana industry to have access to banks, he co-sponsored a bill that would provide federal coronavirus aid to marijuana businesses.

According to Crain’s Chicago Business, unlike many other industries during the pandemic, the marijuana industry is growing substantially.

John Sullivan, an executive vice president at Chicago-based Cresco Labs, a large marijuana company, said, “I think cannabis can make the case for being a huge driver of the recovery, increasing state and federal tax revenues. More people will get interested in this industry and what it can do.”

We have seen what it can do to families and communities in Colorado, Washington and California. The consequences are enormous.

Take ACTION: Click HERE to contact your federal officials: President Donald Trump, U.S. Senators Dick Dubin, Tammy Duckworth, and your U.S. Representative. Ask them to uphold and enforce federal law against the marijuana industry. Ask them to vote AGAINST the “SAFE Banking Act.”

Note: While the bill has passed in the U.S. House, it is uncertain if the U.S. Senate will vote on it at this time. If not, it could potentially be back in the House for another vote in the future. Above is the list of how your congressman voted. Please include reference to their vote in your email. Ask them to oppose it if it returns to the U.S. House.

Subscribe to the IFI YouTube channel
and never miss a video report or special program!

It’s truly hard to believe that “some” state lawmakers want what’s best for Illinois. Tragically, “some,” refers to the majority in both chambers of the Illinois General Assembly.

You know the saying that is often meant for children, “Give ‘em an inch and they’ll take a mile.” Well, it also applies to liberal ‘big government’ activists and power-hungry lawmakers.

We have seen it many times. But let me refresh your memory and give you one prime example.

In the 80’s, homosexual activists wanted to be left alone and not discriminated against. Sounded fair enough. So they got lawmakers to amend the Illinois Human Rights Act. And that opened Pandora’s Box.

In the 90’s, homosexual activists claimed that all they needed was a domestic partnership registry so that they could visit their partners in hospitals. They got what they asked for and before the ink was dry, they suddenly needed an upgrade to same-sex “civil unions” so their joint possessions would be treated like a married couple’s possessions. They got what they asked for and before the ink was dry, they were fighting to redefine the institution of marriage.

While that tragic day will go down in history, it still wasn’t enough.

In the years that followed, the homosexual agenda morphed into the LGBTQIA+ agenda in which they vigorously pursued legislation for hate crime laws, bans on counselors from treating minors who struggle with same-sex attraction and gender confusion, mandates for schools to teach impressionable students in K-12 about the “roles and contributions” of homosexuals and opposite-sex impersonators.

Furthermore, they joined forces with feminists in an effort to pass the federal Equal Rights Amendment, which, if ratified, will remove all gender distinctions in over 800 federal laws, irreparably hurting women. They now demand the Equality Act, which will force employers and workers to conform to new sexual norms or lose their businesses and jobs. Check out our Springfield Bill Tracker for even more.

You get the point and now I’ll get to mine.

Lawmakers have no qualms that they’ve legalized a very addictive drug, high potency marijuana, with no medical value. But that was only the beginning. Here’s what they hope to pass into law for 2020.

HB 4706 (Rep. Sonya Harper D-Chicago) Bring Your Own cannabis – allows county boards to license and regulate businesses for on-site marijuana use.

HB 4889 (Rep. Michael Zalewski D-Riverside) allows for advertising and marketing marijuana products in newspapers.

HB 4339 (Rep. David Welter R-Morris) allows electronic advertising and marketing of marijuana. David Welter was one of 3 Republicans who voted with the House Democrats to legalize recreational marijuana.

HB 5274 (Rep. Sonya Harper D-Chicago) allows for marijuana to be delivered to residences and other locations.

HB 5352 (Rep. Marcus Evans D-Chicago) allows expungement of criminal records for ANY AMOUNT of marijuana.

HB 5472 (Rep. Theresa Mah D-Chicago) allows licenses to sell marijuana at temporary events.

Though many churches and businesses have been forced to close, Governor JB Pritzker has classified liquor and marijuana retail stores as “essential,” and as a result, sales are at a record high. But so is domestic abuse and suicide. Domestic abuse in Chicago is up 18%  and suicide hotline calls have increased 800 percent. One Illinois suicide hotline does not have enough staff to field all the calls.

Does it strike you that they are not acting in the best interest of Illinois families? Can you imagine what this will do to our state if they continue to have their way?

Thankfully, the “stay in place” order prevents lawmakers from being in session, which is extremely good for Illinois families. But that won’t stop them from pushing a broad progressive agenda that will incrementally destroy our state, if we don’t speak out.

Take ACTION: Click HERE to send a message to your state leaders. Or better yet, Click HERE to get their district office phone number and give them a call. Urge them to stop pushing for Schedule 1 drugs to flow freely in Illinois. Lawmakers need to hear from everyone. Please email/call today!

If you appreciate the work and ministry of IFI, please consider a tax-deductible donation to sustain our endeavors.  It does make a difference.

Last month, on June 25th, Illinois Governor JB Pritzker signed legislation to approve so-called “recreational” marijuana for persons 21 years old and older. When this law (HB 1438 Senate Amendment 2) takes effect on January 1, 2020, it will allow the licensed growth, sales, possession and use of marijuana. The Land of Lincoln becomes the 11th state to legalize this dangerous intoxicant for recreational purposes.

The federal government still classifies marijuana as a schedule 1 drug, which means it remains illegal. According to the DEA website, “Schedule I drugs, substances, or chemicals are defined as drugs with no currently accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse.”

There is, however, a way to mitigate the consequences of this destructive policy. The bill that was passed by the General Assembly and hastily signed into law by our governor allows villages, cities and counties to opt out of marijuana retail sales. If you do not want marijuana addicts and recreational users driving in and out of your community regularly to purchase drugs, this important option must be considered.

Take ACTION: Ask your local mayor, village trustees, aldermen and county board members to pass an ordinance prohibiting marijuana dispensaries and marijuana businesses in your community. The Village of Morton in central Illinois is the first municipality to pass such an ordinance. Their ordinance can serve as a template for other communities: Click HERE for this sample ordinance.

Once it is introduced, ask local pastors, local law enforcement officials, doctors, counselors, fire chief and emergency personnel, teachers, school administrators, activists and others in the community to write letters and speak at public hearings in support of a ban on marijuana sales. Cover this entire process in your prayers. Pray especially for the wisdom of local officials who must vote on this proposal.

Background

Today’s high potency marijuana is linked to increases in addiction, psychosis, schizophrenia and violence. States that have legalized it have seen an increase in emergency room visits, hospitalizations, poison control center calls and an increase in use in every age category, including youth. There has also been a dramatic increase in a condition called Cannabinoid Hyperemesis Syndrome.

As perceived risks are blunted by this law, we fully expect an increase in users, addicts, unqualified employee candidates, intoxicated drivers, work place accidents, disabilities, homelessness, mental illness and social welfare dependency. We expect to see marijuana use among people 25 and under—those whose brains are still developing and whose brains are most susceptible to the harms of marijuana use—dramatically increase.

Please take action to diminish the consequences of recreational marijuana in your community.

It is important to note that Gov. Pritzker worked diligently for this legislation, working with the Illinois Senate and Illinois House sponsors of this bill to secure it’s passage. NPR Illinois even highlighted the “Marijuana Moms” who led the charge: Illinois State Senators Heather Steans (D-Chicago) and Toi Hutchinson (D-Olympia Fields), and State Representatives Kelly Cassidy (D-Chicago) and Jehan Gordon-Booth (D-Peoria). How mothers of any political persuasion could promote this dangerous policy is baffling.

Furthermore, it is important to point out that six Republicans also supported this regressive policy to make our highways less safe and to enslave our neighbors to addiction and mental illness: Illinois State Senators Jason Barickman (Bloomington), Neil Anderson (Moline), Steve McClure (Jacksonville), and Illinois State Representatives Allen Skillicorn (Crystal Lake), Lindsay Parkhurst (Kankakee), and David Welter (Morris) voted in favor of this anti-family policy.

In their desperation to find a new revenue source to fix the financial mess they created (and/or to promote a so-called “social justice” antidote), these lawmakers failed sorely in their job to protect Illinois citizens.

IFI Fall Banquet with Franklin Graham!
We are excited to announce that at this year’s IFI banquet, our keynote speaker will be none other than Rev. Franklin Graham, President & CEO of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association and Christian evangelist & missionary. This year’s event will be at the Tinley Park Convention Center on Nov. 1st.

Learn more HERE.

If you follow politics and public policy at all, you know well the saying, “elections have consequences.” Well, during this most recent General Assembly session (January-May), and especially the last two weeks, we have seen those consequences in spades, as super majorities in both the Illinois Senate and Illinois House passed far-reaching agenda items that can only be described extreme, duplicitous, and destructive.

The most wicked of these legislative proposals this session was the Reproductive Health Act (SB 25), the “Kill-Babies-Bill” proposal as Laurie Higgins termed it in a recent article. This bill, which, among other pernicious things, creates a fundamental “right” to abortion, redefines fetal viability, and expands the definition of “health of the patient.” It passed the Illinois House by a vote of 64-50 and the Illinois Senate by a vote of 34-20. Governor JB Pritzker is expected to sign it into law this summer.

The exploitation of children doesn’t stop with the push to eliminate them in utero. Those who survive regressives’ blood-lust agenda must now navigate the LGBTQIA+ minefield thanks to the LGBT History Mandate (HB 246). This proposal will mandate that all students in K-12 public schools be taught about the “roles and contributions” of homosexuals and opposite-sex impersonators and that textbooks purchased include discussions of the roles and contributions of homosexuals and opposite-sex impersonators. This legislation was passed in the Illinois Senate by a vote of 37-17 and in the Illinois House by a vote of 60-42. Governor JB Pritzker is expected to sign it into law this summer.

Then we have the push to legalize “recreational” marijuana (HB 1438), a policy against which left-leaning publications opined, include the Chicago Tribune, New York Times and New Yorker. For two years now, IFI has worked tenaciously to educate Illinois residents in every part of the state, with special forums, articles, videos, web conferences, radio interviews and through a variety of other social media postings. With the help of a few Republican lawmakers in each chamber, this legislation was passed in the Illinois Senate by a vote of 38-17 and in the Illinois House by a vote of 66-47. Governor JB Pritzker is expected to sign it into law this summer.

I would be remiss not to mention the anti-IFI resolution (HJR 55) that is still pending in Springfield. The sponsors have not withdrawn this indefensible motion that Springfield regressives would exploit to use the power of the government to quash our work, speech, and presence in Springfield. Their call to curtail our right to lobby at the Capitol and for the Illinois State Police to investigate us for “hate speech” is still hanging over our head and could be called for a vote anytime through January 2020 when the 101st General Assembly ends.

To say that this session has been frustrating is an understatement. The floor debates have been both laughable and discouraging. For example, State Representative Maurice West (D-Rockford) spoke on the House floor during debate on SB 25, self-identifying as a Christian minister to justify and advocate for baby slaughter.

There is a dearth of wisdom, common sense, courage, integrity, and compassion in the Illinois General Assembly. Hosea 4:6 laments, “My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge,” and 2 Timothy 4:3 warns that “the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires.” This toxic combination was on full display this month. There aren’t many serving in Springfield who are resolutely pro-family conservative in their political ideology and even fewer who hold to a biblical worldview.

After a season of a lot of hard work and prayer, it is easy to be discouraged by the outrageous politics of Illinois. We are well down the slippery slope. Where it will bottom out, no one knows. It appears that God has turned Illinois over to debased (depraved) thinking as Romans 1:28-32 predicts. In short, our state’s political leaders have not just forgotten God but are also arrogantly shaking their collective fists at Him. At the same time, far too many church leaders sit on the sidelines doing their very best to stay lukewarm. As a result, Illinois is under judgment.

At this point it is wise for us to take a deep breath, take a step back, and gain some perspective.

The Lord doesn’t call His servants to victory, but rather to faithfulness (1 Corinthians 4:2; Luke 16:10-12). We are called to do good works (Matthew 5:16; Ephesians 2:10). We are called to observe all of God’s commandments (John 14:15; 1 John 2:3) and to teach them to our children (Deuteronomy 6:7; Proverbs 22:6; Psalm 78:2-4) and to the nations (Matthew 28:19-20). And Jesus tells us that all of these things and more hang on the second great commandment to love our neighbors as ourselves (Matthew 22:36-40).

In the end, we must be mindful that many of our neighbors are oblivious to what Scripture teaches. They are captives of false ideologies (Luke 4:18; 2 Corinthians 10:5) and distracted by vain worldly pursuits (James 4:4). More importantly, we are called to keep our eyes on the prize (Philippians 3:14), not the storm around us. And we are instructed not to grow weary of doing good (Galatians 6:9) — even in the People’s Republic of Illinois.

We have a lot of work ahead of us. Establishing and reinforcing a biblical worldview in our families and in our churches is vital if we hope to help our own family members, let alone our neighbors, to navigate the culture in Illinois. The snares have been set out for us, our children, our grandchildren, and our neighbors. And with every legislative session, those snares are multiplying.

We remain resolved to work hard to educate and influence the hearts and minds of anyone who has ears to hear and eyes to see, for the sake of the King and His Kingdom. May His will be done, on earth, as it is in heaven.

Subscribe to the IFI YouTube channel
and never miss a video report or special program!

A new and slightly different “recreational” marijuana bill has been introduced in the Illinois General Assembly.

This new 610 page proposal, Senate Amendment 2 to HB 1438, is now moving quickly in the Illinois General Assembly, as proponents want to beat the end of session deadline, which is this Friday, May 31^st.  This effort has the power of the governor behind it.

What we know:

Governor Pritzker is leaving no stone unturned. He is fulfilling his campaign promise to legalize and commercialize high potency weed. We have heard that he’s personally calling lawmakers and offering them whatever they want in return for their vote to legalize.

If proponents are successful, “super weed” will be legal and commercialized. Think billboards and ads.

Don’t think for a minute that marijuana is harmless. It is not. It’s far more potent than in the 60’s and 70’s — and this new legislation does not limit THC levels. In Colorado, marijuana products have THC levels that are 20 to 95 percent THC. Yet in the Netherlands, marijuana products over 15 percent are considered hard drugs, and illegal.

If passed in Illinois, traffic fatalities, hospitalizations and poison control center calls will increase, as they have in states that have legalized. More drugs will flood into our communities and more kids will start using and become addicted. Kids already think it’s harmless. In their eyes, it’s “medicine.”

There is ample research that shows that regular use among youth can permanently reduce their IQ by as many as 8 points. The frontal lobe doesn’t fully develop until age 25 or 26. Regular marijuana use affects that portion of the brain where THC is stored. For a child with an average IQ, the loss of 8 IQ points could result in a minimum wage verses a good paying job in their future.

This “super weed” is directly linked to an increase in psychotic behavior, schizophrenia and violence.

With the governor making calls and promises, this new amended legislation (HB 1438) could get the needed 60 votes in the Illinois House and 30 votes in the Illinois Senate to pass — including Republicans. Calls and emails do make a difference! YOU can help stop this foolishness from becoming reality in Illinois.

Take ACTION: Please pray that this bill does not pass! Then Click HERE to send an urgent email asking your lawmakers to oppose HB 1438. Then make a quick call into their Springfield offices. Click HERE for their phone numbers in Springfield. They will be the last 2 on the list.

Watch more:

Please visit IFI YouTube channel and this video playlist dedicated to the opposition of marijuana legalization.

Read more:

Thinking Biblically About Recreational Marijuana

Cannabis Myths Exposed

Medical Doctor from Peoria Opposes Legal Pot

ER Doc Says “Recreational” Pot Has Ruined My Town

IFI Resource Page on Marijuana

Former State Rep. Jeanne Ives Address Marijuana & Illinois’ Economic Crisis (podcast)

More info:

NoWeedIllinois.com

A bold voice for pro-family values in Illinois!

Click HERE to learn about supporting IFI on a monthly basis.

“There’s other ways to generate revenue, not on the backs of our kids and young adults who are going to be addicted and sucked into this.” So said State Representative Marty Moylan (D-Des Plaines), at a news conference that was held outside the Thompson Center earlier this month. Rep. Moylan is leading a bipartisan effort that opposes Illinois Governor JB Pritzker’s precipitous push to legalize recreational marijuana.

Please watch as Rep. Moylan voices concerns regarding aggressive commercialization, increased addiction, impact on neighborhoods, and compliance and oversight challenges. Parents and grandparents especially need to be aware of the negative effects legalized, high potency marijuana will impose on the children and youth of Illinois.

Take ACTION: Please click HERE to send a message to your state senator and state representative to urge them to reject the push for legal marijuana.

Additionally, PLEASE CALL your lawmakers to make sure they know that many people oppose this disastrous policy. Click HERE for their names and phone numbers, which you will find at the end of the state list. Please make the calls!

Watch more:

Please visit IFI YouTube channel and this video playlist dedicated to the opposition of marijuana legalization.

Read more:

Thinking Biblically About Recreational Marijuana

Medical Doctor from Peoria Opposes Legal Pot

ER Doc Says “Recreational” Pot Has Ruined My Town

IFI Resource Page on Marijuana

Former State Rep. Jeanne Ives Address Marijuana & Illinois’ Economic Crisis (podcast)

More info:

NoWeedIllinois.com

A bold voice for pro-family values in Illinois!

Click HERE to learn about supporting IFI on a monthly basis.

State Senator Heather Steans (D-Chicago) and State Representative Kelly Cassidy (D-Chicago) have spent 2 years developing and promoting their proposal to legalize “recreational” marijuana in Illinois. On May 7th, their 533-page bill (SB 7) was introduced in the Illinois Senate.

Last week the Senate Executive Committee held a 2.5 hour subject matter hearing on this bill, and it was alarming to hear how many concerns and questions they were unable to lay to rest.

Michele Ratini, a social worker from a Leyden High school District 212 in Northlake, testified in opposition to legalization, pointing out that teenagers are not smoking cigarettes anymore, but are instead smoking and vaping tobacco and marijuana. She said she is seeing an increased number of students exhibiting paranoia and psychosis.

Dr. Albert Mensah, who runs the Mensah Medical Center, corroborated her statements. But Illinois State Senator Toi Hutchinson (D-Chicago Heights), a strong proponent of legalization, thinks that that is the very reason we should legalize, tax and regulate it.

If students are easily getting the high potency stuff now, how much easier will it be for them to get it once it’s legalized?

To give you a reference point to digest the following information, keep in mind that the Woodstock marijuana of the 1960s and 1970s contained 1-3 mg. of THC (what gets you high). And people back then got plenty high. Today’s marijuana contains 20-25 mg. of THC.

A question was raised in the committee hearing: Will expungements of felony convictions for marijuana allow for someone filling out a Firearm Owners Identification (FOID) or Conceal Carry form to indicate “No” on whether they have ever been convicted of a felony? (Keep in mind that the vast majority of inmates in prison for possession charges have plea-bargained down from more serious felony crimes.) Illinois Deputy Governor Christian Mitchell, who was representing the governor’s office, answered “Yes.” In other words, convicted felons, whose more serious crime charges were significantly reduced, will have their records automatically expunged.

Also, once you read what the bill will allow, keep in mind that today’s high potency marijuana is directly linked to an increase in mental illness such as psychosis, schizophrenia and violent behavior.

The bill is huge, but here’s a small picture of what SB 7 will do:

• Allow possession of 30 grams of cannabis by anyone 21 and older. By the way, thirty grams is equivalent to 75 joints.

• Allow marijuana-infused edibles containing 500 mg of THC. Colorado limits the THC in edibles to 100 mg.

• Allow possession of 5 grams of concentrates which contain upwards of 99 percent pure THC.

• Allow homes to grow up to 5 plants. One plant can yield ½ lb (226 grams) and can be harvested 4 times per year. Five plants times 4 harvests would yield 10 lbs. or over 11,000 joints. There is absolutely no way to regulate this, per law enforcement who testified. This is why Colorado’s black market is surging.

• Provides $20 million in low-interest loans for “social equity applicants” who have been “disproportionately impacted” by discriminatory drug policies. These are your recently convicted felons. Based on their point system, if you have been convicted of any offense eligible for expungement, you automatically have 25 points.

• Provides a waiver of 50 percent of startup costs for “social equity applicants” who have been “disproportionately impacted” by discriminatory drug policies.

• Identifies disproportionately impacted areas (i.e., minority communities) for dispensary locations.

• Institutes a cannabis purchaser tax (note: it’s the regulations and taxation that cause the black market to thrive by selling it cheaper):

10 percent on cannabis with a THC level at or below 35 percent

20 percent on cannabis infused products

25 percent on cannabis with THC level above 35 percent

3 percent Municipal Purchaser Tax

0.24 percent County Tax

3.5 percent Unincorporated Area Tax

• No marijuana dispensaries or advertising within 1,500 ft of a school, playground, hospital, park, childcare center. (That’s only about 1 ½ blocks, but they could keep it a mile away and kids and teens would still be exposed.)

• Allocation of revenue:

35 percent General Revenue Fund

25 percent Restoring Our Communities Fund (Apparently, once you flood the “disproportionately impacted” communities with more drugs, you throw some money their way. But I digress.)

20 percent Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services

10 percent Budget Stabilization Fund (There’s an oxymoron if I ever saw one.)

8 percent Illinois Law Enforcement Training and Standards Board

2 percent Drug Treatment Fund for public education and awareness

• Local Ordinances – Municipalities may enact reasonable zoning restrictions pertaining to licensed cultivation centers, craft growers, processing organizations, and dispensaries. (The definition of “reasonable” has not been defined, according to last week’s hearing.)

Major Omission

There are no limits to THC levels in what SB 7 will allow. The Dutch government has walked back their liberal drug policies because of the problems they have encountered with high levels of THC. They now consider 15 percent or higher as a hard drug, alongside opioids and ecstasy. That should tell us how serious and dangerous it is to legalize high potency marijuana as “recreational.”

SB 7, as you can see from the proposed taxation schedule, has no limits. High THC levels are linked to an increase in mental illness, especially psychosis and schizophrenia, as well as being responsible for the increase in hospitalizations and ER visits. SB 7 also allows for concentrates, or extracts, which are sticky substances produced via distillation and containing upward of 99 percent THC.

Take ACTION: Please click HERE to send a message to your state senator and state representative to urge them to reject the push for legal marijuana.

Additionally, PLEASE CALL your lawmakers to make sure they know that many people oppose this disastrous policy. Click HERE for their names and phone numbers, which you will find at the end of the state list. Please make the calls!

Watch more:

Please visit IFI YouTube channel and this video playlist dedicated to the opposition of marijuana legalization.

Read more:

Thinking Biblically About Recreational Marijuana

Cannabis Myths Exposed

Medical Doctor from Peoria Opposes Legal Pot

ER Doc Says “Recreational” Pot Has Ruined My Town

IFI Resource Page on Marijuana

Former State Rep. Jeanne Ives Address Marijuana & Illinois’ Economic Crisis (podcast)

More info:

NoWeedIllinois.com

A bold voice for pro-family values in Illinois!

Click HERE to learn about supporting IFI on a monthly basis.

There are various situations and circumstances that contribute to the growing problem of homelessness in America. According to Pastor Phil Kwiatkowski, president of Pacific Garden Mission in Chicago, the factor that most often leads to homelessness is drug use and addiction.  With this reality in mind, why would anyone think that legalizing recreational marijuana is a good idea?

In this video, Pastor Kwiatkowski relates his experience with the connection between homelessness and drug use, specifically marijuana, through the stories of the teens and adults who have come to Pacific Garden Mission to find help and hope. Despite what legal weed proponents would have you believe, marijuana is addictive and it most certainly is a gateway drug that leads to the use of heroin, cocaine, and other “hard” drugs.

Please take  15 minutes to watch and listen to Pastor Kwiatowki’s concerns about legalizing marijuana in Illinois:

Take ACTION: Please click HERE to send a message to your state senator and state representative to ask them to reject the push for legal marijuana. Respectfully request they do not legalize marijuana in Illinois. Additionally, please call your lawmakers to make sure they know that many people oppose this disastrous policy. The Capitol switchboard number is (217) 782-2000.

Read more:

Thinking Biblically About Recreational Marijuana

Medical Doctor from Peoria Opposes Legal Pot

ER Doc Says “Recreational” Pot Has Ruined My Town

IFI Resource Page on Marijuana

A bold voice for pro-family values in Illinois!

Click HERE to learn about supporting IFI on a monthly basis.

Many people advocate for the legalization of marijuana from a position of bias, but Dr. Raymond Bertino opposes legalization on the basis of truth – medical facts and economics realities that expose the lies of recreational pot proponents.

In a January 2019 town hall forum hosted by Illinois State Representative Marty Moylan (D-Des Plaines), Dr. Bertino outlines the grim future that lies ahead for the largest group of marijuana users, young adults aged 18 to 25. He presents data that proves frequent marijuana use causes physical damage in critical brain development, which in turn leads to an alarming trend of “failure to launch” in this vulnerable age group.

In addition to detailing the physical, emotional, and social damage caused by pot, Dr. Bertino also does the math, proving that supporters’ claims that legalized marijuana will solve Illinois’ fiscal woes just don’t add up.

Please share this video with family and friends!

Take ACTION: Please click HERE to send a message to your state representative and state senator to urge them to oppose any and all efforts to legalize marijuana. Ask them to oppose SB 7, and tell them you don’t want your more impaired workers on job sites, more impaired drivers on the road, more young people being sucked into a life of addiction and local hospitals having to deal with all of this.

A bold voice for pro-family values in Illinois!

Click HERE to learn about supporting IFI on a monthly basis.

Marijuana – is it a harmless plant, a medically beneficial substance, or a dangerous, destructive drug? Depending on who you ask, the answer will vary widely.

Dr. Karen Randall speaks to this question based on her experience as an ER physician and a resident of Pueblo, Colorado. This community has first-hand knowledge of the devastating effects of legalized marijuana for “medical” and recreational use.

Dr. Randall explains the science that proves the marijuana of today is not the same as the comparatively low-potency pot that baby boomers smoked in the sixties and seventies. She warns about the danger of edibles, the increase in homelessness and chronic absenteeism in schools, and the strain and drain on social service agencies, law enforcement, medical facilities and professionals, and taxpayers. Drawing from her emergency room experience with adolescents, Dr. Randall discusses the alarming trend toward cannabis use disorder, psychotic episodes, and schizophrenia in younger users.

Liberal leaders and legislators don’t want you to hear what Dr. Randall has to say. Unless we want to suffer the same fate as Pueblo and the state of Colorado, we must spread the truth about legalized recreational marijuana. Please share this video with family and friends!

Take ACTION: Please click HERE to send a message to your state representative and state senator to urge them to oppose any and all efforts to legalize marijuana. Ask them to oppose SB 7, and tell them you don’t want your more impaired workers on job sites, more impaired drivers on the road, more young people being sucked into a life of addiction and local hospitals having to deal with all of this.

A bold voice for pro-family values in Illinois!

Click HERE to learn about supporting IFI on a monthly basis.

Written by Alex Berenson

Over the past 30 years, a shrewd and expensive lobbying campaign has made Americans more tolerant of marijuana. In November 2018, Michigan became the 10th state to legalize recreational cannabis use; New Jersey and others may soon follow. Already, more than 200 million Americans live in states that have legalized marijuana for medical or recreational use. Yet even as marijuana use has become more socially acceptable, psychiatrists and epidemiologists have reached a consensus that it presents more serious risks than most people realize.

This article was originally published at The Wall Street Journal.

Written by Erin Philen

Many states are rushing to legalize powerful recreational marijuana, but they’re running headlong into mental-health issues that should stop them in their tracks. Thanks to recreational marijuana legalization, we are steadily deciding as a nation that widespread availability of marijuana is worth the mental-health risk to our youth, the medical evidence for which is growing stronger every year.

Marijuana is obviously not a new trend, and for the many adults who used it during their adolescence, there seems to be no lasting damage. That’s one reason why, over the past 50 years, the effort to legalize and normalize marijuana use has steadily grown into a movement that has changed minds and laws. So why make marijuana use a big deal now? After all, marijuana, compared to narcotic and psychedelic drugs, seems relatively harmless. However, the big issue here is that marijuana is much more potent now. Today’s marijuana has been hybridized by specialty farmers into an incredibly powerful mind-altering drug. A study labeled the “Functional Consequences of Marijuana Use in Adolescents” found that the average THC content of marijuana has increased from an estimated one percent in the 1960s, to just under three percent in the 1990s, to almost 13 percent today. Recent studies found that adolescent marijuana users demonstrated poorer performance on tests of attention, verbal learning/memory, sequencing, and psychomotor speed compared to non-using adolescents.

At least until the early or mid-20s, “the brain is still under construction,” says Staci Gruber, PhD, Harvard neuroscientist and director of the Cognitive and Clinical Neuroimaging Core. During this period of neurodevelopment, the brain is thought to be particularly sensitive to damage from drug exposure.

The frontal cortex — the region critical to planning, judgment, decision-making and personality — is one of the last areas to fully develop, Gruber says. She has further shown that these commonly high levels of THC permanently degrade the brains’ “white matter,” which helps enable communication among neurons. This rewiring has been linked to major mental health issues including anxiety and depression.

Even so, state governments continue to normalize marijuana’s use and provide easier and easier access to it. As a result, marijuana has become the most frequently used drug by adolescents in the U.S., with statistics showing that 15% of adolescents have tried marijuana by 8^th grade and 45% report use by 12^thgrade, as published by the Journal of Drug Issues in 2015. The rates among high school students are increasing, with daily use the highest it has been in the past 30 years.

Of course, most states’ marijuana laws make its use illegal for those under 21, but, just like alcohol, the prohibition hasn’t prevented underage kids from getting their hands on it.

State lobbyists and political libertarians have worked hard to give recreational marijuana a positive reputation, gradually spreading its influence across the United States as its legalization movement expands, riding in on the white horse of the health benefits provided by THC marijuana’s therapeutic cousin, the non-psychoactive forms of medical cannabis.

So, why are states ignoring the growing body of evidence that recreational marijuana has long-term damaging effects on young brains and instead focusing their anger on the relatively benign nicotine addiction potential of smokeless vaping among the young?

It’s simple. The “sin tax” revenues that will come into government coffers from recreational marijuana sales, just like gambling revenues from state lotteries, will be significant.

That may be true, of course, but if lawmakers think that this tradeoff is worth damaging young brains and jeopardizing America’s future, they’re the ones that must be smoking something!

Erin Philen is an undergraduate student at the Annenberg School of Communications and Journalism at the University of Southern California.

This article was originally published at AmericanThinker.com

Recently, a Colorado expert on the consequences of legalizing recreational marijuana spoke to groups in Bloomington, Pontiac, and Naperville, in addition to doing media interviews with Dan Proft and Amy Jacobson on WIND radio, Ken and Deb in the Morning on WDLM radio, a somewhat acrimonious interview with Sam Wood on WJBC radio and a newspaper interview with Derek Beigh of The Pantagraph.

What Jo McGuire reports from Colorado is truly shocking. Illinois residents must understand the consequences of legalization and contact their lawmakers to oppose it.

Recreational marijuana has affected every part of Colorado’s culture: schools and increased youth use, poisonings, car fatalities, hospital admissions – all of which we have reported on. But what’s little known, and Big Marijuana wants to keep it that way, is the effect it’s having on neighborhoods, the environment, and homelessness.

In Colorado, in order to accomplish their goals, Big Marijuana lied, claiming it would do away with the Black Market and solve Colorado’s budget crisis. Sound familiar?  But the Black Market is doing better than ever.  In fact, they’re doing so well, cartels now purchase million dollar homes for cash in beautiful gated communities, gut them and start growing pot. Incredibly large amounts of marijuana are shipped elsewhere, including Mexico. And none of it is taxed, which was also their promise.

Like Colorado, Illinois’ bill allows for 5 plants per adult. Home grows, she said, are impossible to monitor plus it created another large non-taxable market referred to as the “grey market.” Home growers have discovered they too can make money selling it cheaper than the taxed and regulated pot dispensaries (which outnumber Starbucks, McDonald’s, and Walmart by double). Furthermore, explosions from butane extraction labs set up in these homes to produce concentrates are common.

Watch Jo McGuire’s full presentation here — and please share this information widely:

Worldview Conference May 5th

Worldview has never been so important than it is today!  The contemporary culture is shaping the next generation’s understanding of faith far more than their faith is shaping their understanding of culture. The annual IFI Worldview Conference is a phenomenal opportunity to reverse that trend. This year we are featuring well-know apologist John Stonestreet on Saturday, May 5th at Medinah Baptist Church. Mr. Stonestreet is s a dynamic speaker and the award-winning author of “Making Sense of Your World” and his newest offer: “A Practical Guide to Culture.”

Click HERE to learn more or to register!

There is a tremendous amount of misinformation about today’s high potency marijuana. Overdose rates have increased in states that have legalized such as Colorado, which legalized ‘recreational” marijuana in 2014.  As a result of legalization, they’ve also seen significant increases in youth pot use, homelessness, and workers failing drug tests. That and the alarming number of hospitalizations and even deaths, plus car accident fatalities are on the rise from those driving under the influence of marijuana should give us pause about this policy. But what should cause parents to flood lawmaker’s offices with urgent pleas to oppose legalization is this destructive consequence of marijuana use.

But there is more…

You may be surprised to learn that the marijuana black market is flourishing in states that have legalized pot. For example, the Chicago Tribune recently reported that Oregon’s top federal prosecutor is dealing with, in his words, a “massive marijuana overproduction problem,” pointing out that it “is attracting cartels and criminal networks and sparking money laundering, violence and environmental woes.”

That is bolsted by statistics from Colorado which says the number of Hispanics and African Americans arrested for marijuana-related offenses rose 29 and 58 percent two years after legalization.  Ironically, some proponents, like Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle, publicly support legal weed arguing that it would “reduce racial disparities in  drug prosecution.”  Yet, the exact opposite is happening.

Should Illinois lawmakers legalize it for recreational use? Before you decide, hear from the experts. Get the facts that the institutional media will not tell you!

On February 6th, IFI held its 2^nd live-streamed webinar on our Facebook page.  That video is now available here and on our YouTube channel:

Our guests include:

–>Dr. Andrew Weiner, a clinical psychologist and the director of addiction services at Linden Oaks Behavioral Health in Naperville

–>Ron Cospagna, retired Colorado high school principal; awarded 2012 Colorado Teacher of the Year; witness to the effects of marijuana on Colorado youth

–>Marvella Black, drug legalization opponent for over 30 years and witness to the effects of marijuana in the African-American community

Please note:  There will be a referendum question on the Cook County ballot on March 20^th and possibly one for the entire state for the General Election on November 6^th on whether or not to legalize. Before you cast your vote, know the facts!

Bulletin Insert:  Ask your pastor to share this bulletin insert with your congregation.  The body of Christ and people of faith must be informed about the consequences of this policy, and encouraged to vote NO to legal marijuana in Illinois.

If you haven’t watched our first webinar on this topic, it’s well worth your time. It can be found on our Facebook page HERE, or on our YouTube channel HERE.

Subscribe to the IFI YouTube channel
and never miss a video report or special program!