marijuana

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo is calling for the legalization and regulation of marijuana for recreational use by adults, his third attempt in as many years to get the drug fully legalized in the state.

As the new year begins, New York state leaders face two major challenges. One is the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic as infection rates spike again and a vaccine rollout begins. The second is the state’s related multibillion-dollar budget deficit, which needs to be closed by spring.

A Buffalo Public Schools teacher is facing up to life in prison for drug trafficking.

Lobbyists for the hemp industry in New York say new rules released by state regulators for how to bring CBD products to market favor big corporations over small farmers.

Proponents of legalizing marijuana for adult use in New York were handed good news Thursday by Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who said the state’s massive budget deficit heading into next year will likely be a catalyst for the drug’s legalization in the coming months.

Agriculture officials in New York say federal rules for producing hemp are “unrealistic.” The state also said they won’t try to regulate the crop. Hemp farmers say they will have to be very careful without support from the state.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Thursday that as New York prepares to make adult recreational marijuana use legal, he plans to soon visit states where marijuana is legal to get some tips on what did and did not work for them.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo is getting some good news, as he prepares to release his 2020 state budget. The latest polling numbers from Siena College show Cuomo's favorability rating got a slight boost, while his job performance got an even bigger boost.

New York lawmakers are set to return to Albany this week for the start of the new legislative session, and a second year of near-total control of state government by Democrats.

During last year’s session, Democrats — who wrested control of the state Senate from Republicans in the 2018 midterm elections — passed a tsunami of bills long desired by liberals. This year, they are set to tackle complicated and weedy topics that have yet to pass, including paid surrogacy, aid-in-dying and a single-payer health care system.

The governors of New York, New Jersey, Connecticut and Pennsylvania met Thursday in New York City to try to hash out a multi-state approach to legalizing the adult recreational use of marijuana.

A New York State law decriminalizing marijuana went into effect Wednesday, one month after Gov. Andrew Cuomo signed the bill.

A $150 million hemp industrial park is open in Broome County. Ontario-based Canopy Growth will operate the park in Kirkwood. The hope is the business will create over 400 jobs.

Erie County District Attorney John Flynn says his office will no longer pursue misdemeanor charges for low-level possession of marijuana, following the state legislature’s passage of a decriminalization bill.

A bill currently before Gov. Andrew Cuomo would regulate the sale of CBD products in New York State and set up new rules for the state’s growing hemp industry. Cuomo has not yet decided whether he’s going to sign it, potentially leaving what is now a legal gray area in limbo.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo is non-committal when it comes to removing county clerks from office if they refuse to enforce the newly passed Green Light law. He, instead, is looking forward to its day in court. That was just one of the post-legislative session topics discussed on public radio Monday.

Sen. Liz Krueger (D-Manhattan) - who introduced New York's measure to legalize, regulate and tax marijuana - says the effort has gone up in smoke. In a statement released late Wednesday morning, Krueger said "it is clear the measure will not pass this session," but called it only "a delay," not the "end of the road."

With 11 working days left in the legislative session, the atmosphere is intensifying at the State Capitol. Democrats who lead the Legislature are facing pressure from all sides to deliver on legislation that they campaigned on.