New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) on Monday signed a bill decriminalizing the use of marijuana in the state and expunge the records of some people convicted on cannabis-related charges. “Communities of color have been disproportionately impacted by laws governing marijuana for far too long, and today we are ending this injustice once and for all,” […]
new york marijuana
New York lawmakers vow renewed marijuana legalization push in 2020
The push to legalize marijuana this year came to a grinding halt — one that certain New York lawmakers trust is temporary. State Sen. Liz Krueger (D-Manhattan) and Assembly Majority Leader Crystal Peoples-Stokes (D-Buffalo), the sponsors of the Marijuana Regulation and Taxation Act, say they intend to revive the bill during the next legislative session. Several proponents of recreational use […]
New York Weed Dealers on Legalization: ‘I Don’t Want to Be Left in the Dark’
New York lawmakers failed to reach a deal to legalize recreational marijuana during the legislative session that ended last month, punting the issue until they reconvene in January of next year. The latest development in the months-long back and forth was received with mixed emotions from one group of New Yorkers who would be affected by any […]
Inside NY’s new marijuana decriminalization law: How it works
Legalization of marijuana for recreational use failed in New York this year. So lawmakers turned instead to “decriminalization.” But what, exactly, does that mean? Here’s how one advocate who favored legalization sees decriminalization: “You can have some (marijuana) but you can’t buy it, can’t sell it, can’t trade or grow it and you’ll still be arrested […]
New York lawmakers strike deal to decriminalize marijuana possession
State lawmakers were poised to give final passage Thursday night to a measure further decriminalizing possession of marijuana and create a process that could lead to the clearing of marijuana conviction records for tens of thousands of people. A separate measure to greatly expand the state’s existing medical marijuana program — which suffers from high […]
Legalizing marijuana in New York won’t happen in final days of legislative session
Legalizing marijuana in New York will have to wait until next year. Lawmakers and Gov. Andrew Cuomo are set to end the legislation session in the next day or two without an agreement to make New York the 11th state to allow marijuana sales and possession. Supporters scrambled this week to put together legislation that would satisfy undecided […]
Marijuana Legalization Isn’t Dead Yet in New York
Lawmakers in New York are mounting a renewed and frantic push to legalize marijuana before the legislative session ends on Wednesday, even as debates about revenue and political blowback that doomed an earlier attempt have threatened to derail the effort again. Staff members from the State Senate, Assembly and governor’s office met throughout the weekend, […]
Cuomo cites marijuana legalization as a top priority
Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo began lowering expectations on Tuesday for what state lawmakers may accomplish before leaving Albany on June 19. The governor outlined an aggressive to-do list for the final four weeks of the legislative session, including legalization of marijuana and allowing driver’s licenses for undocumented immigrants. Cuomo also cast doubt on whether the […]
How Looser Medical Marijuana Laws Could Bite NY In The Bud
The Brian Lehrer Show spent three weeks looking at the issues facing marijuana legalization in the tri-state area for a series called Reefer, Managed. Here’s the first of three stories cataloguing some of their findings for Gothamist. As New York’s legislature struggles to reach a consensus on how to legalize recreational marijuana, some lawmakers are also seeking to expand […]
Marijuana Legalization Hits a Wall: First in New Jersey, Then in New York
In March, both states seemed days away from a landmark legalization deal. Now inertia is feeding doubts that it can happen this year. A push to legalize recreational marijuana in New York and New Jersey this year appears all but dead in both states, a dramatic fall for an effort that just over a month […]
Marijuana Testing of Job Applicants Is Barred by New York City in Groundbreaking Measure
Most employers in New York City would no longer be able to force job applicants to take drug tests for marijuana use, under a bill overwhelmingly approved this week by the City Council. If the drug-screening law is enacted, it would put New York in relatively uncharted territory. Several drug policy and employment experts said […]
N.Y. medical marijuana maker expands into Massachusetts recreational market
Vireo Health, a maker of medical marijuana in New York, is expanding into the recreational marijuana market with the $10 million acquisition this week of a Massachusetts firm. The company bought Mayflower Botanicals Inc., a registered marijuana dispensary certificate holder in Massachusetts. As part of the transaction, Vireo acquired 73 acres of land in rural New Bedford, […]
Push for legal marijuana is stalled in New York government
Time is ticking for New York’s governor and state lawmakers as they continue to hash out a deal to fund the government for the coming fiscal year. As the Monday deadline approaches to approve the budget, the push for legalizing adult-use cannabis does not appear to have made the cut. The Albany Times-Union reported Thursday legalized marijuana […]
Advocates, Cuomo disagree on status of marijuana legalization talks
Marijuana advocates say negotiations at the state Capitol to legalize the drug for adult use have been halted as Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo and legislative leaders this week try to nail down the final pieces of a state budget agreement. Sources with knowledge of the matter said a number of rank-and-file legislators were told marijuana […]
Black Lawmakers to Block Legalized Marijuana in N.Y. if Their Communities Don’t Benefit
Black lawmakers are blocking a push to legalize recreational marijuana in New York, warning that Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo’s proposal could perpetuate the racial inequality fostered under current drug laws. The lawmakers say that unless people of color are guaranteed a share of the potentially $3 billion industry, there may be no legalization this year. They […]
NYC bodega owners rally for right to sell marijuana when its legalized
They want in on this budding industry. New York City bodega owners rallied in The Bronx on Sunday morning to urge state politicians to allow them to sell marijuana in the city’s 15,000 stores when the green is ultimately legalized. “Rather than drug peddling outside of these bodegas, we want to bring them inside,” said […]
New York assembly speaker casts doubt on quick marijuana legalization
New York’s Democratic lawmakers and Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo may not be able to hammer out a deal on legalizing adult-use marijuana in the next two months, according to Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie. In remarks Thursday following a criminal justice event in Manhattan, the speaker discounted the possibility of legislative leaders agreeing to a framework […]
Cities, towns could opt-out under Andrew Cuomo’s New York marijuana plan
Cities and towns in New York would still be able to ban marijuana sales under Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s soon-to-be-released plan to legalize the drug statewide. Cuomo, a Democrat, is expected to unveil his full recreational marijuana proposal Tuesday as part of his budget plan and State of the State address, which is set for 2 p.m. But […]
