Recreational marijuana should be legalized, New York report concludes

Jon Campbell | Albany Bureau

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ALBANY — New York could take in up to $678 million in tax revenue in a year if it legalizes marijuana for recreational use, according to a long-awaited report issued Friday by the state Department of Health.

The state Health Department's 74-page report officially backed the legalization of marijuana, concluding that the "positive effects" outweigh the "potential negative effects."

That conclusion was anti-climactic: Health Commissioner Howard Zucker had previously said the report would support legalization.

But the full report, which Gov. Andrew Cuomo ordered in January, analyzed an array of economic, social and criminal-justice issues associated with the drug, estimating the state could see anywhere from $248 million to $678 million added to its coffers in the first year depending on the price of the drug and the rate it's taxed.

"The positive effects of a regulated marijuana market in NYS outweigh the potential negative impacts," the report reads. "Areas that may be a cause for concern can be mitigated with regulation and proper use of public education that is tailored to address key populations."

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Reasons for legalization

The report laid out dozens of reasons the state should legalize the drug, saying it could cut down on the disproportionate arrests of black and Hispanic users and allow the state to control the licensing and regulating of the industry.

It used tax rates of 7 percent and 15 percent to come up with its revenue estimates.

New York currently allows marijuana for medical use, though it's program is one of the most restrictive in the country, prohibiting users from taking the drug in smokeable forms.

The report is the latest in a quick evolution for Cuomo, who has long been wary of marijuana legalization, calling it a "gateway drug" as recently as last year.

But he has signaled he's more open to legalizing the use of recreational marijuana in recent months, ordering the Health Department to undergo the study as part of his State of the State address last January.

Speaking to reporters Friday morning in Brooklyn, Cuomo said he had not yet read the report.

“The report has come back," Cuomo said. "I have not gone through it. I’m going to be briefed on it this afternoon by Dr. Zucker.”

Lawmakers must act

The state Legislature would have to approve any law legalizing marijuana for recreational use in New York.

Lawmakers are not scheduled to return to the state Capitol until January.

All 213 legislators are set to be up for election in November, which will decide whether Democrats or Republicans control the narrowly divided Senate — a balance of power that could have a significant impact on whether a marijuana-legalization bill gets a vote next year.

The report was applauded by the Drug Policy Alliance, an advocacy group that has long called for marijuana legalization.

In a statement, Chris Alexander, the group's policy coordinator, said any law legalizing the drug should include broad measures to clear the records of those who have been convicted under the state's current marijuana laws.

“Now that the report has been released and its conclusions presented, we are hopeful that the governor and the Legislature can shift from the ‘if’ to examining the ‘how’ to legalize marijuana," Alexander said in a statement.

After Cuomo launched the report in January, it was initially expected to be completed sometime before the end of the year.

That changed two months ago, when Cuomo said the report was coming within days.

Last month, Zucker said the report would conclude the pros of legalization outweighed the cons, saying the full document would be released "soon."

The report was ultimately released Friday, a day after Alain Kaloyeros, the former SUNY Polytechnic Institute president who led some of Cuomo's top economic-development projects, was convicted of fraud in a bid-rigging case.

Cynthia Nixon, Cuomo's Democratic primary opponent, issued a statement suggesting the report was meant to distract from the conviction.

Cuomo said that wasn't the case.

“Skepticism is one thing," the governor said. "Paranoia is something else. This report was supposed to be done two weeks ago."

JCAMPBELL1@gannett.com

Jon Campbell is a correspondent for the USA TODAY Network's Albany Bureau.