Politics
New York Governor Unveils Updated Marijuana Legalization Plan For 2021

The governor of New York unveiled basic details about his proposed marijuana legalization plan for 2021 on Wednesday.
One day after lawmakers representing nearly one-third of the state Senate prefiled a separate comprehensive cannabis reform bill, Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) said legalization “should have been passed years ago.”
It was expected that the governor would be putting forward another legalization proposal, as he’s included the reform in annual fiscal plans over the past two years and often discussed the need to generate tax revenue from marijuana sales to boost the state economy amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Watch Cuomo discuss cannabis below:
“I think too many people have been imprisoned and incarcerated and punished,” Cuomo said at a press briefing on Wednesday. “Too many of those people are black, Latino and poor. It’s exaggerated the injustice of the justice system.”
“For years I’ve tried to pass it, but this is a year where we do need the funding and a lot of New Yorkers are struggling, so I think this year will give us the momentum to get it over the goal line,” he added. “As everyone knows, Massachusetts has legalized marijuana. New Jersey is going to legalize marijuana. So, what are we really talking about at this point?”
Cuomo’s proposal involves establishing a new Office of Cannabis Management to regulate the state’s marijuana and hemp industries.
The governor’s office said the plan will create “an equitable structure” for the cannabis market “by offering licensing opportunities and assistance to entrepreneurs in communities of color who have been disproportionately impacted by the war on drugs.”
I'm announcing a proposal to legalize cannabis and create an equitable adult-use cannabis program in NYS.
This program will generate much-needed revenue, while allowing us to support those that have been most harmed by decades of failed cannabis prohibition.#SOTS2021
— Andrew Cuomo (@NYGovCuomo) January 6, 2021
The state is expected to generate $300 million in annual marijuana tax revenue once the program is fully operational.
“Despite the many challenges New York has faced amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, it has also created a number of opportunities to correct longstanding wrongs and build New York back better than ever before,” Cuomo said in a press release. “Not only will legalizing and regulating the adult-use cannabis market provide the opportunity to generate much-needed revenue, but it also allows us to directly support the individuals and communities that have been most harmed by decades of cannabis prohibition.”
While few additional details are available about the governor’s plan, his office said it “reflects national standards and emerging best practices to promote responsible use, limiting the sale of cannabis products to adults 21 and over and establishing stringent quality and safety controls including strict regulation of the packaging, labeling, advertising and testing of all cannabis products.”
“Cannabis regulation also offers the opportunity to invest in research and direct resources to communities that have been most impacted by cannabis prohibition,” the announcement says.
Lt. Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) said on Wednesday that she agrees with Cuomo that “our State needs to finally legalize recreational marijuana with an equitable program that generates much-needed revenue for New York.”
Our State needs to finally legalize recreational marijuana with an equitable program that generates much-needed revenue for New York.
This has long been a priority for me and @NYGovCuomo.
Letās get it done. #SOTS2021 https://t.co/5xBUWqIq4H
— Kathy Hochul (@LtGovHochulNY) January 6, 2021
The separate bill introduced in the Senate by Sen. Liz Krueger (D) and 18 other lawmakers this week is identical to a version she filed last year that did not advance.
While legislators and the governor are both generally in favor of ending prohibition and establishing a regulated marijuana market, there have been ongoing disagreements over certain provisions such as the tax structure and where to allocate the resulting revenues.
It’s immediately not clear to what extent Cuomo’s new plan will address those concerns, but it is the case that the legislature will have more influence this year after Senate Democrats secured a supermajority in the November election. If the governor were to veto any bill over details he didnāt like, they could potentially have enough votes to override him.
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Marijuana Moment is already tracking more than 100 cannabis bills in state legislatures and Congress this year. Patreon supporters pledging at least $25/month get access to our interactive maps, charts and hearing calendar so they don’t miss any developments.
Learn more about our marijuana bill tracker and become a supporter on Patreon to get access.
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New York lawmakers increasingly regard legalization as inevitable, despite differing opinions on the specifics.
The top Republican in the New York Assembly said last month that heĀ expects the legislature to legalize cannabis this coming session.
Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins (D) said in November that she alsoĀ anticipates that the reform will advance next year, though she noted that lawmakers will still have to decide on how tax revenue from marijuana sales is distributed.
Cuomo also said that month thatĀ the āpressure will be onā to legalize cannabis in the stateĀ and lawmakers will approve it āthis yearā to boost the economy amid the health crisis.
The push to legalize in New York could also be bolstered by the fact that voters in neighboring New JerseyĀ approved a legalization referendum in November.
Separately, eight other bills that focus on medical marijuana were recently prefiled in New York, and they touch on a wide range of topicsāfrom tenantsā rights for medical cannabis patients to health insurance coverage for marijuana products.
Colorado Governor Requests $5M To Support Marijuana Entrepreneurs And Social Equity Businesses
Photo elements courtesy ofĀ Metropolitan Transportation Authority and Carlos Gracia.
Politics
Top Pennsylvania Official Restores Marijuana Flag After GOP Lawmakers Allegedly Got It Removed

Lt. Gov. John Fetterman’s (D) marijuana and LGBTQ flags are waving again at his Capitol office after state officials removed them Monday night, allegedly at the behest of certain GOP lawmakers who feel strongly about the activist decor.
The day after their removal, the lieutenant governor proudly announced on Twitter that he’d restored the flagsāone rainbow-themed and the other displaying cannabis leaves.
“I really can’t emphasize this enough, my issue isn’t with the individuals that came to take them down. They’re kind of caught in the middle of it so it’s not them,” Fetterman told Marijuana Moment. “But the Pennsylvania GOP exerted enough pressure and made enough drama so they felt that they needed to do something and they took them down. When I realized that, I just put them back up.”
I even had to rehang this one. š pic.twitter.com/NPuADtb1Lt
— John Fetterman (@JohnFetterman) January 26, 2021
The flags have been an unusual source of controversy for some members of the legislature. In November, Republican lawmakers passed budget legislation that included a provision targeting his cannabis-themed office decor, making it so only the American flag, the Pennsylvania flag and those honoring missing soldiers could be displayed at the Capitol building.
Itās kinda flattering that they changed Pennsylvania law just for me. š„ŗšš
Speaking of changing laws…
Iāll take them down when we get:
LEGAL WEED š© FOR PA + EQUAL PROTECTION UNDER THE LAW for LGBTQIA+ community in PA.
ā¬ļøš«š„š§šØš©š¦šŖ https://t.co/B8XMXqcVZJ— John Fetterman (@JohnFetterman) November 20, 2020
“There’s one great way to get them down for good and we can end this,” the lieutenant governor said. And that’s by enacting legislative reform.
“It shouldn’t have to be this way. These are not controversial things. These are very fundamentally American things. It’s freedom-related. It’s individuality-related. It’s jobs. It’s revenue,” he said. “These are not controversial, but these flags are. For the party that thinks it’s A-OK to talk about how an election that was secure was rigged, they sure have a real thin skin when it comes to free speech.”
A spokesperson for the state Department of General Services confirmed to Marijuana Moment that it was tasked with removing the flags and did so “in order to comply with section 1724-E of the fiscal code.” Asked whether lawmakers from the legislature’s Republican majority influenced the recent action, the representative repeated: “All I can say is the Department of General Services removed the flag in order to comply with section 1724-E of the fiscal code.”
Marijuana Moment reached out to the offices of the Senate majority leader and House speaker for comment, but representatives did not respond by the time of publication.
Defying the flag order is par for the course for Fetterman, a longtime marijuana reform advocate who is weighing a run for the U.S. Senate. His enthusiastic embrace of the issue has often put him in the spotlight, and he said he’d take that advocacy to Congress if he ultimately decides to enter the race and is elected.
“I’m the only person that’s actually called out my own party for its failure to embrace it when it is appropriate,” he said, referring to his repeated criticism of the Democratic National Committee’s rejection of a pro-legalization platform. “There has never beenāor would ever beāa more committed advocate to ending this awful superstition over a plant for the United States.”
šØšØ PENNSYLVANIA *AND* DNC IS BEING LAPPED ON LEGAL WEED BY THE DAKOTAS NOW
— John Fetterman (@JohnFetterman) January 26, 2021
On his campaignĀ website, the lieutenant governor touts his role in leading a listening tour across the state to solicit public input on the policy change. He noted that, following his efforts, Gov. Tom Wolf (D) āannounced his support for legalization for the first time.ā
It remains to be seen when legalization will happen in Pennsylvania, however. Despite Fetterman and Wolfās support for legalization and the pressure theyāre applying on lawmakers, convincing Republican legislative leaders to go along with the plan remains a challenge.
Fetterman previously told Marijuana Moment that pursuing reform through the governorās budget request is a possibility. But in the meantime the administration is exploring the constitutionality of issuing āwholesale pardons for certain marijuana convictions and charges.ā
Since adopting a pro-legalization position in 2019, Wolf hasĀ repeatedly called on the legislature to enact the policy change. Heās stressed that stressed that marijuana reform could generate tax revenue to support the stateās economic recovery from the coronavirus pandemic and that ending criminalization is necessary for social justice.
In September, he took a dig at the Republican-controlled legislature for failing to act on reform in the previous session. And in August, he suggested that the state itself could potentially control marijuana sales rather than just license private retailers as other legalized jurisdictions have done.
Fetterman previously said that farmers in his state canĀ grow better marijuana than people in New Jerseyāwhere voters approved a legalization referendum in Novemberāand thatās one reason why Pennsylvania should expeditiously reform its cannabis laws.
He also hosted a virtual forum where he gotĀ advice on how to effectively implement a cannabis systemĀ from the lieutenant governors of Illinois and Michigan, which have enacted legalization.
Shortly after the governor announced that he was embracing the policy change, a lawmaker filed a bill toĀ legalize marijuana through a state-run model.
A majority of Senate Democrats sent Wolf a letter in July arguing thatĀ legislators should pursue the policy change in order to generate revenue to make up for losses resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic.
Top New York Official Responds To Marijuana Advocates’ Criticism Of Governor’s Legalization Plan
Photo courtesy of Twitter/John Fetterman.
Politics
Hawaii Could Legalize Psychedelic Mushroom Therapy Under New Senate Bill

Hawaii could legalize the use of psychedelic mushrooms for therapy under a newly filed bill in the state legislature.
The measure, if approved, would direct the state Department of Health to āestablish designated treatment centers for the therapeutic administration of psilocybin and psilocyn,ā two psychoactive substances produced by certain fungi.
It would also remove the two compounds from the stateās list of Schedule I controlled substances and create a seven-person psilocybin review panel to assess the impacts of the policy change.
Few other specifics are provided in the bill, SB 738, introduced in the state Senate on Friday. It doesnāt specify who would qualify for the therapy, for example, or how precisely the drugsāwhich remain federally illegalāwould be administered. The legislation simply says the Department of Health āshall adopt rules” in accordance with state law.
The new legislation comes less than a year after Hawaii lawmakers introduced bills to begin studying the therapeutic use of psychedelic mushrooms with the goal of eventually legalizing them, though those measures did not advance.
Entheogensāincluding other substances like ayahuasca and ibogaineāhave emerged as a promising treatment for severe depression, anxiety and other conditions, although research remains ongoing.
In November, voters in Oregon approved a ballot measure to legalize psilocybin therapy that the state is now in the process of implementing.
The new Hawaii bill was introduced by Sens. Stanley Chang, Laura Clint Acasio, Les Ihara Jr. and Maile Shimabukuro, all Democrats. It has not yet been scheduled for a hearing, according to the state legislatureās website.
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Marijuana Moment is already tracking more than 400 cannabis, psychedelics and drug policy bills in state legislatures and Congress this year. Patreon supporters pledging at least $25/month get access to our interactive maps, charts and hearing calendar so they don’t miss any developments.
Learn more about our marijuana bill tracker and become a supporter on Patreon to get access.
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The Hawaii proposal is one of a growing number of broader reform bills to have been introduced across the country this year as the debate on drug policy moves beyond marijuana. A measure introduced in New York earlier this month would remove criminal penalties for possessing small amounts of any controlled substance, instead imposing a $50 fine. Similar measures are expected to be introduced in California and Washington State this year.
A Florida lawmaker recently announced plans to introduce legislation to legalize psilocybin for therapeutic purposes in the state.
Lawmakers in New Jersey last month sent a bill to Gov. Phil Murphy (D) that would reduce criminal charges for the possession of psilocybin, but so far Murphy hasnāt signed the measure.
Voters, meanwhile, have been broadly supportive of drug reform measures in recent years. In addition to the psilocybin. measure, Oregon voters in November also approved an initiative to decriminalize possession of all drugs. Washington, D.C. voters overwhelmingly enacted a proposal to decriminalize the possession of psychedelics.
Despite the growing discussion of drug reform at statehouses across the country, some high-profile advocates are setting their sights on the 2022 election. Dr. Bronnerās CEO David Bronner, a key financial backer of successful reform efforts in Oregon, told Marijuana Moment last month that heās expecting both Washington state and Colorado voters will see decriminalization or psilocybin therapy on their 2022 ballots.
Meanwhile, a new advocacy group is pushing Congress to allocate $100 million to support research into the therapeutic potential of psychedelics.
New Psychedelics Reform Group Sets Sights On Congress As Movement Builds
Photo courtesy of Wikimedia/Workman
Politics
Minnesota Governor Urges Lawmakers To Pursue Marijuana Legalization Amid Budget Talks

The governor of Minnesota on Tuesday implored the legislature to look into legalizing marijuana as a means to boost the economy and promote racial justice.
During a briefing focused on his budget proposal for the 2022-23 biennium, Gov. Tim Walz (D) was asked whether he is open to allowing sports betting in the state to generate tax revenue. He replied he wasn’t closing the door on that proposal, but said he is more interested in seeing lawmakers “take a look at recreational cannabis.”
Not only would tax revenue from adult-use marijuana “dwarf” those collected through sports betting, he said, but legalization would also help address “the equity issue and, quite honestly, the racial impact of our cannabis laws.”
Watch the governor discuss marijuana legalization below:Ā
“I will say this, I will certainly leave open that possibility. Our neighboring states have done both of those things,” Walz said of legalizing sports gambling and cannabis. “I obviously recognize that that’s not a 100 percent slam dunk for people, and they realize that there’s cost associated with both. But my message would be is, I don’t think this is the time for me to say I’m shutting the door on anything.”
Walz did not include a request to legalize through his budget, however, as governors in some other states have.
The Minnesota governor did say in 2019, however, that he was directing state agencies to prepare to implement reformĀ in anticipation of legalization passing.
Earlier this month, the House majority leader said he would again introduce a bill to legalize marijuana in the new session. And if Senate Republicans donāt go along with the reform, he said he hopes they will at least let voters decide on cannabis as a 2022 ballot measure.
Heading into the 2020 election, Democrats believed they had a shot of taking control of the Senate, but that didnāt happen. The result appears to be partly due to the fact that candidates from marijuana-focused parties in the stateĀ earned a sizable share of votesĀ that may have otherwise gone to Democrats, perhaps inadvertently hurting the chances of reform passing.
House Speaker Melissa Hortman (D) said this month that “Senate Republicans remain the biggest obstacle to progress on this issue.ā
āMinnesotaās current cannabis laws are doing more harm than good,ā she told The Center Square. āBy creating a regulatory framework we can address the harms caused by cannabis and establish a more sensible set of laws to improve our health care and criminal justice systems and ensure better outcomes for communities,” she said.
Senate Majority Leader Paul Gazelka (R), for his part, said that while he would be “open to expanding medical use or hearing criminal justice reforms,” he doesn’t “believe fully legalized marijuana is right for the state.”
“Other states that have legalized marijuana are having issues with public safety,” he argued, “and we are concerned that we haven’t fully seen how this works with employment issues, education outcomes and mental health.”
Last month, the Minnesota House Select Committee On Racial Justice adopted a report that broadly details race-based disparities in criminal enforcement and recommends a series of policy changes, including marijuana decriminalization and expungements.
Another factor that might add pressure on lawmakers to enact the reform is the November vote in neighboring South DakotaĀ to legalize adult-use cannabis.
Also next door, Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers (D) is pushing lawmakers to enact marijuana reform and recently said that he isĀ considering putting legalization in his upcoming budget request.
New Mexico Governor Pushes For Marijuana Legalization In State Of The State Address
Photo courtesy of Philip Steffan.