The two neighboring Northeast states that share the country\u2019s biggest metropolitan area are both moving toward cannabis legalization \u2014 although at different speeds. In New York, Gov. Andrew Cuomo is, at least, weighing the idea. In New Jersey, Gov. Phil Murphy has openly embraced it. And with action in New Jersey\u2019s state house stalled, some municipalities are starting to take the lead.<\/p>\n
Jersey City, located just across the Hudson River from Lower Manhattan, this week announced that it is implementing its own \u201cmarijuana decriminalization policy.\u201d As with the\u00a0similar move<\/a>\u00a0taken by New York City this year, this is not actually a change to the law, but to enforcement and prosecution. As\u00a0The Jersey Journal<\/a>\u00a0explains, prosecutors are instructed to downgrade most cannabis charges to non-criminal offenses \u2014 and encouraged to seek dismissal of low-level charges altogether.<\/p>\n The new policy, embraced by Mayor Steven Fulop, is outlined in a July 19\u00a0memo<\/a>\u00a0from the Office of the Municipal Prosecutor. City prosecutor Jake Hudnut is recommending a fine of no more than $50 or five hours of community service if charges are not dismissed. Cannabis possession is usually charged as a \u201cdisorderly person\u201d offense, carrying up to six months behind bars.<\/p>\n In announcing the move, Hudnut said: \u201cWhat gives me pause is that despite similar cross-racial usage of marijuana, New Jerseyans of color are three times more likely to be arrested and prosecuted for marijuana than white New Jerseyans. I think prosecutors have an obligation to acknowledge this and fix this problem.\u201d<\/p>\n An estimated 25,000 people in New Jersey are arrested annually for cannabis possession. This costs the state justice system some $1 billion each year, including jailing, policing and court proceedings, according to New York\u2019s\u00a0WPIX<\/a>.<\/p>\n The Garden State\u2019s governor Murphy took office in January after campaigning on a pledge to legalize cannabis,\u00a0raising expectations<\/a>\u00a0for imminent legislation. In March, he\u00a0announced it as a goal for this year<\/a>. But while the state medical marijuana program is expanding fast, there has been little headway on building a regulated adult use marketplace.<\/p>\n More than 10,000 patients have enrolled in the medical program since Murphy was sworn in, bringing the current total to some 25,000. A July 16\u00a0New York Times<\/a>\u00a0account featured the newly opened\u00a0Harmony Dispensary<\/a>\u00a0in Secaucus, where an ambitious on-site indoor grow operation will eventually cover 15,000 square feet. It is projected to yield an annual two tons of bud.<\/p>\n Yet even with the state legislature controlled by Murphy\u2019s Democrats, and even with the support of Senate president Stephen Sweeney, the legalization bill still hasn\u2019t been introduced. Lawmakers in Trenton have been distracted by an intraparty dispute over the state budget.<\/p>\n Still, Murphy says he\u2019s ready to introduce the bill in the fall. \u201cI would hope we could do it this year,\u201d he told the Times.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, in New York, the state\u00a0Health Department\u00a0on July 13 released its\u00a0long-awaited<\/a>\u00a0report on cannabis legalization, which had been ordered by Gov. Cuomo. The\u00a0report<\/a>, entitled \u201cAssessment of the Potential Impact of Regulated Marijuana in New York State,\u201d concludes: \u201cThe positive effects of a regulated marijuana market in NYS outweigh the potential negative impacts. Areas that may be a cause for concern can be mitigated with regulation and proper use of public education.\u201d<\/p>\n Cuomo immediately said that he accepted its findings. \u201cThe situation on marijuana is changing,\u201d he told the\u00a0New York Times<\/a>. While he stopped short of stating that he would back legalization, he spoke as if the idea were under serious consideration. \u201cNow you have to answer specifics. Who sells it? Where do they sell it? What quantity can you sell?\u201d he asked. \u201cThat to me, the devil\u2019s in the details. And to come up with a full program, that\u2019s what we have to answer.\u201d<\/p>\n The report makes a convincing case \u2014 raising points that cannabis advocates have been hitting on for years. \u201cResearch indicates that regulating marijuana can reduce opioid use (legal and illegal),\u201d it states. It finds \u201cno conclusive evidence about whether legalizing marijuana increases use.\u201d And it adds: \u201cMeta-analysis of existing literature does not support the hypothesis that recent changes to marijuana laws have led to an increase in marijuana use prevalence in adolescents.\u201d<\/p>\n Once again, the report notes that \u201cone of the biggest drivers of racial disparities in criminalization and incarceration rates is marijuana, and the best way to address it is to legalize marijuana.\u201d<\/p>\n That Cuomo ordered the report at all was clearly a response to growing pressure from below. The\u00a0insurgent candidacy<\/a>\u00a0of Cynthia Nixon in this year\u2019s gubernatorial race, with cannabis a key issue, has lit a fire under the state\u2019s political establishment \u2014 even prompting Cuomo\u2019s own state Democratic Party to\u00a0officially embrace legalization<\/a>. The challenge now will be to keep the pressure on. Assuming Cuomo wins re-election in November (which is a good bet), he could go to sleep on the issue again \u2014 unless advocates can keep that fire burning.<\/p>\n TELL US,<\/strong> do you think New Jersey or New York will legalize cannabis first?<\/p>\n The post Pressure Builds for Cannabis Legalization in New Jersey and New York<\/a> appeared first on Cannabis Now<\/a>.<\/p>\n
The two neighboring Northeast states that share the country\u2019s biggest metropolitan area are both moving toward cannabis legalization \u2014 although at different speeds. In New York, Gov. Andrew Cuomo is, at least, weighing the idea. In New Jersey, Gov. Phil Murphy has openly embraced it. And with action in NewContinue Reading<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":190,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"false","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[50,216,3918,94,3920,4069,5032,215,208,593,81],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28000"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/190"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=28000"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28000\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":28001,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28000\/revisions\/28001"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=28000"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=28000"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=28000"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}Activists Strike Back in the Empire State<\/h4>\n
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\nRead More: Pressure Builds for Cannabis Legalization in New Jersey and New York<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"