Now that New York has legalized marijuana, cities and towns across the state are debating whether to opt out of allowing cannabis sales, as the law allows them to do. The Wall Street Journal reports on a number of suburban municipalities on the eastern end of Long Island that are weighing the potential benefits of tax revenue and jobs against the impact of pot businesses and an increase in drugged driving. Some localities, including the Town of Hempstead in Nassau County, have already said no to cannabis businesses. A recent poll indicated that a majority of residents of New York City approve of opting out, as communities in many legalized states have already done, despite surveys showing general support for marijuana legalization.
Meanwhile, more and more Democratic politicians are embracing legalization, seeing it as a unity issue for the party. They believe that supporting easier access to weed—as a way to advance social equity and criminal-justice reform—will appeal to the party’s younger and more progressive base. The outlier political figure on legalization, however, is President Biden, who favors decriminalization and letting states go their own way on recreational and medical marijuana use.
And finally, there’s growing debate concerning what to about high levels of intoxicating THC in cannabis products: to reduce consumption and protect public health, some advocate taxing pot with more potent THC, while others say it’s best to establish and impose set limits. It’s good we’re finally discussing public health and cannabis reform, but pushback from the cannabis industry will likely scuttle any effort to place caps on THC levels, as happened recently in Colorado.