CHICAGO — After nearly 10 months of delay, a judge Friday ended the court order preventing Illinois from issuing 185 new recreational cannabis store licenses — though further litigation may jeopardize those licenses again.
Cook County Circuit Judge Michael Mullen lifted the stay that was issued last year, allowing the state to begin licensing new businesses, many of them started by Black and Latino owners.
The ruling means that companies that spent thousands of dollars to stay alive without revenue may now take steps toward opening, including finalizing zoning approval, buying or renting real estate, ordering supplies and hiring employees. That process may take several months to more than a year before the stores open.
The courts had prohibited licensing while considering lawsuits by companies that argued they were unfairly excluded from lotteries to award the licenses. State officials plan a corrective lottery to give those plaintiffs another chance to win a license.
By law, the first 75 licenses were supposed to have been issued two years ago, but were delayed by problems with scoring the license applications, which resulted in only 21 companies qualifying for a license lottery out of more than 700 applicants.
“People are super excited to move forward,” said attorney Ryan Holz, who represents businesses in line to get new licenses, as well as others that were excluded from the license lotteries.
But, he cautioned, there’s also a real concern that businesses that were excluded may ask for a new court order to hold up the licenses again.
The Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation, which licenses pot dispensaries, issued a statement that it anticipates releasing detailed information about next steps for applicants as soon as it gets guidance in a federal lawsuit. That case involves a challenge to the state’s residency requirements for dispensary owners.
“Today is a key development toward our ultimate goal of creating the most diverse, inclusive, and robust adult use cannabis industry of any state in the country,” said the agency’s secretary, Mario Treto Jr. “We stand ready to swiftly move forward in ensuring Illinois’ standing as a national leader in the advancement of cannabis equity.”
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Black and Latino applicants have complained they have been unfairly kept out of the legal cannabis business in Illinois, where just 21 licenses for full-size growers have been issued, almost entirely to white owners, several of whom have come to dominate the industry nationally.
To ensure fairness for all applicants and correct any errors in the lottery process, the state agency announced, it is also working on finalizing plans for three corrective lotteries to be held in June — one for each of the dispensary lotteries held in 2021. Updates will be available on the agency’s adult use cannabis website.
The legal reversal in the case came after one of the companies suing the state over the licensing process, WAH Group LLC, asked to end the prohibition on the new licenses. The firm, represented by attorney and co-owner Mazie Harris, won the rights to three licenses, so it stands to benefit from the process moving forward.
WAH’s request also noted that Cook County Judge Celia Gamrath, in another cannabis licensing case, had warned that it could take many months or years to resolve ongoing litigation.
U.S. cities where manufacturing is thriving
U.S. Cities Where Manufacturing Is Thriving
Photo Credit: BigPixel Photo / Shutterstock
The health of the manufacturing sector in the U.S. has been a major focus of public attention in recent years. With populist political figures like Donald Trump on the right and Bernie Sanders on the left offering critiques of U.S. trade policy and debating how best to assist American manufacturers and workers, policymakers and economic leaders of all stripes have put new focus on support for manufacturing. From former President Trump’s focus on trade policy and President Biden’s $1.2 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill to companies “reshoring” plants and consumers expressing preferences for American-made goods, combatting the apparent decline of U.S. manufacturing has become a shared commitment.
Manufacturing is important to the U.S. economy for several reasons. Manufacturing jobs have historically been a pathway to the middle class, offering good pay without requiring high levels of education. Companies that rely on manufacturing invest heavily in research and development, which helps drive innovation. Domestic manufacturing also contributes to more secure and resilient supply chains—a point that has become clear during the COVID-19 pandemic.
But in recent decades, the role of manufacturing in the U.S. economy has been diminished. Many companies began moving factories abroad in search of lower costs and better profit margins. Trade deals like NAFTA reduced the cost of foreign imports, giving U.S. producers more competitors. Technological advances made manufacturing processes more efficient, which reduced the need for many manufacturing jobs.
The effects of these shifts in manufacturing are most apparent in employment, which has decreased over the years as a share of overall employment and in total numbers. After manufacturing peaked near 40% of U.S. jobs at the height of World War II, the sector has seen a steady decline over time, to around 8.4% of employment today. In total employment, manufacturing jobs peaked at 19.5 million in the late 1970s and fell off sharply after 2000 to just 12.6 million today.
Manufacturing accounts for a much smaller share of the US workforce than in decades past
But despite the decrease in manufacturing employment over the past several decades, manufacturing output as a share of real GDP has stayed relatively stable. Since 1997, manufacturing has fluctuated between 11.5% and 13.2% of GDP, after adjusting for inflation. While manufacturing output as a share of nominal GDP has declined over that span (from 16.2% to 10.9%), the change in the nominal figures reflects both growth in other sectors as well as slower price increases for manufactured goods more so than a decline in manufacturing productivity.
Manufacturing output has remained relatively stable as a share of real GDP
But one important piece of the conversation around manufacturing in the U.S. is where manufacturing is thriving. Many Northern states that were major U.S. manufacturing centers historically, including New York and Pennsylvania, have seen lower rates of growth in employment and output from manufacturing in recent years. Instead, many of the states with the highest recent growth in manufacturing—both for employment and GDP—are found in the southern and western U.S.
Nevada has seen nearly 50% growth in both manufacturing employment and GDP from 2010 to 2020, while California has had a 45.6% increase in GDP and Florida saw a manufacturing GDP increase of 35.5%. At the metro level, many of the top locations for manufacturing currently are also found in these states, though a few Rust Belt metros have also enjoyed a resurgence in manufacturing.
Nevada has experienced the most manufacturing growth over the past decade
The data used in this analysis is from the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. To determine the locations where manufacturing is thriving, researchers at Construction Coverage calculated a composite score based on the following factors and weights:
- Manufacturing employment growth from 2010 to 2020 (2X)
- Manufacturing GDP growth from 2010 to 2020 (2X)
- Manufacturing share of total employment in 2020 (1X)
- Manufacturing share of total GDP in 2020 (1X)
In the event of a tie, the location with the greater manufacturing employment growth from 2010 to 2020 was ranked higher. To improve relevance, only metropolitan areas with at least 100,000 residents were included. Additionally, metros were grouped into cohorts based on population size.
Here are the U.S. metropolitan areas where manufacturing is thriving.
Small and midsize metros where manufacturing is thriving
15. Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL
Photo Credit: Kevin J King / Shutterstock
- Composite score: 59.2
- Manufacturing employment growth (2010–2020): +16.5%
- Manufacturing GDP growth (2010–2020): +48.1%
- Manufacturing share of total employment (2020): 4.0%
- Manufacturing share of total GDP (2020): 7.7%
14. Tucson, AZ
Photo Credit: RCole3 / Shutterstock
- Composite score: 59.4
- Manufacturing employment growth (2010–2020): +13.9%
- Manufacturing GDP growth (2010–2020): +28.4%
- Manufacturing share of total employment (2020): 5.7%
- Manufacturing share of total GDP (2020): 12.6%
13. Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, FL
Photo Credit: Songquan Deng / Shutterstock
- Composite score: 60.9
- Manufacturing employment growth (2010–2020): +33.5%
- Manufacturing GDP growth (2010–2020): +36.1%
- Manufacturing share of total employment (2020): 3.3%
- Manufacturing share of total GDP (2020): 4.9%
12. San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX
Photo Credit: f11photo / Shutterstock
- Composite score: 62.4
- Manufacturing employment growth (2010–2020): +13.7%
- Manufacturing GDP growth (2010–2020): +128.4%
- Manufacturing share of total employment (2020): 3.8%
- Manufacturing share of total GDP (2020): 9.5%
11. Austin-Round Rock-Georgetown, TX
Photo Credit: ShengYing Lin / Shutterstock
- Composite score: 62.6
- Manufacturing employment growth (2010–2020): +30.9%
- Manufacturing GDP growth (2010–2020): +21.9%
- Manufacturing share of total employment (2020): 4.5%
- Manufacturing share of total GDP (2020): 11.2%
10. Tulsa, OK
Photo Credit: Sean Pavone / Shutterstock
- Composite score: 63.7
- Manufacturing employment growth (2010–2020): +16.8%
- Manufacturing GDP growth (2010–2020): +20.5%
- Manufacturing share of total employment (2020): 9.1%
- Manufacturing share of total GDP (2020): 13.3%
9. Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler, AZ
Photo Credit: Sean Pavone / Shutterstock
- Composite score: 64.2
- Manufacturing employment growth (2010–2020): +22.2%
- Manufacturing GDP growth (2010–2020): +37.2%
- Manufacturing share of total employment (2020): 5.1%
- Manufacturing share of total GDP (2020): 9.6%
8. Raleigh-Cary, NC
Photo Credit: Sean Pavone / Shutterstock
- Composite score: 64.2
- Manufacturing employment growth (2010–2020): +14.4%
- Manufacturing GDP growth (2010–2020): +56.8%
- Manufacturing share of total employment (2020): 3.8%
- Manufacturing share of total GDP (2020): 15.1%
7. Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA
Photo Credit: Bob Pool / Shutterstock
- Composite score: 67.2
- Manufacturing employment growth (2010–2020): +14.1%
- Manufacturing GDP growth (2010–2020): +28.8%
- Manufacturing share of total employment (2020): 8.5%
- Manufacturing share of total GDP (2020): 17.8%
6. Nashville-Davidson–Murfreesboro–Franklin, TN
Photo Credit: Mihai_Andritoiu / Shutterstock
- Composite score: 68.7
- Manufacturing employment growth (2010–2020): +22.6%
- Manufacturing GDP growth (2010–2020): +44.8%
- Manufacturing share of total employment (2020): 6.1%
- Manufacturing share of total GDP (2020): 10.3%
5. San Francisco-Oakland-Berkeley, CA
Photo Credit: Radoslaw Lecyk / Shutterstock
- Composite score: 70.0
- Manufacturing employment growth (2010–2020): +19.0%
- Manufacturing GDP growth (2010–2020): +65.2%
- Manufacturing share of total employment (2020): 4.8%
- Manufacturing share of total GDP (2020): 15.5%
4. Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI
Photo Credit: Sean Pavone / Shutterstock
- Composite score: 70.7
- Manufacturing employment growth (2010–2020): +22.9%
- Manufacturing GDP growth (2010–2020): +20.3%
- Manufacturing share of total employment (2020): 9.7%
- Manufacturing share of total GDP (2020): 17.0%
3. San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA
Photo Credit: Sean Pavone / Shutterstock
- Composite score: 70.9
- Manufacturing employment growth (2010–2020): +21.5%
- Manufacturing GDP growth (2010–2020): +58.6%
- Manufacturing share of total employment (2020): 6.1%
- Manufacturing share of total GDP (2020): 11.8%
2. San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA
Photo Credit: Uladzik Kryhin / Shutterstock
- Composite score: 77.4
- Manufacturing employment growth (2010–2020): +9.8%
- Manufacturing GDP growth (2010–2020): +94.6%
- Manufacturing share of total employment (2020): 12.6%
- Manufacturing share of total GDP (2020): 24.2%
1. Grand Rapids-Kentwood, MI
Photo Credit: Henryk Sadura / Shutterstock
- Composite score: 79.6
- Manufacturing employment growth (2010–2020): +28.1%
- Manufacturing GDP growth (2010–2020): +20.3%
- Manufacturing share of total employment (2020): 16.5%
- Manufacturing share of total GDP (2020): 24.2%
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