Albany, New York – Under legislation by Governor Kathy Hochul on Wednesday, New York police would have more authority to close down illicit marijuana businesses and impose fines of up to $200,000. Hochul is trying to protect the state’s nascent legal recreational marijuana sector.
Although only three stores have opened thus far in New York City and two in upstate New York, the state is working hard to kickstart its potentially enormous adult legal industry. A profusion of unauthorized stores is undermining legal city enterprises.
City officials have already pursued landlords who permitted illegal businesses to run. The new law being considered by the legislature would grant the state Office of Cannabis Management and state tax officials more authority to crack down on illegal operations.
The law would set processes for the government to close down unlicensed enterprises and grant the cannabis office increased ability to seize illegal goods. According to the Hochul administration, violations could result in fines of $200,000 for illegal cannabis plants or goods, and businesses might be punished with $10,000 per day for selling cannabis without a license.
In a prepared statement, Hochul said: “The continuous presence of illegal dispensaries is intolerable, and we need additional enforcement measures to safeguard New Yorkers from harmful goods and promote our equitable objectives.
We need additional enforcement measures to safeguard New York.
Since the recreational use of marijuana was legalized in New York in March 2021, progress has been modest.
New York has reserved its initial retail licenses for charitable organizations, applicants with prior marijuana convictions, and their relatives, in contrast to many other states. The measures are intended to remedy injustices brought on by the nation’s drug war.
However, while a legal challenge to the state’s selection procedure is being examined, a federal judge has temporarily barred the state from issuing recreational marijuana dispensary licenses in Brooklyn and specific regions of upstate New York. The business Variscite NY One claims that the state’s selection procedure disfavors out-of-state residents in violation of the constitutional provisions governing interstate trade.
Veteran cannabis investor Emily Paxhia praises New York for having solid intentions about social fairness but claims the city was blind to the necessity of establishing action against unlawful shops at an early stage. The legalization rollout thus far, according to Paxhia, a co-founder and managing partner of Poseidon Investment Management, is “a disaster” but not a total failure.
Paxhia, a Buffalo native, said: “I’m still hopeful that the New York market turns around.
SOURCE – (AP)
