It happened a month ago, but I've only just heard about it.
Same with many US states. Doesn't tend to be reported much (if at all) here in backward Britain, with its mostly conservative media. Pity, as the failing UK economy could probably use some of the tax revenue.
https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/31/nyregion/cuomo-ny-legal-weed.html
People smoke it, anyway, so why not legalize it? The state could really use the tax money from the official sales. It’s probably not going to end the illegal weed trade, but it will hurt it significantly.
People would have access to the substance, and a lot of them would lose their interest in it because something that’s not prohibited is not that interesting anymore. I have a prescription for CBD oil for my insomnia and anxiety from the doctor, and this stuff really works wonders. I buy it from https://weedofficials.com/, and it makes me feel better. I have never felt that good for a long time.
Is legalizing going to end the illegal trade? I doubt that actually but it's still an effective measure to make weed less unusual and, therefore, less interesting
I quit smoking cigarettes eighteen years ago, after having smoked almost thirty years, and I did it with the help of marijuana.
It also does a much better job of reducing stress and anxiety than the commonly prescribed Xanax.
Legalizing marijuana found to decrease use of alcohol, pain meds and cigarettes.
A team of researchers at the University of Washington has found that when a state decriminalizes recreational use of marijuana, the use of alcohol, pain medications and cigarettes by young people decreases.
https://medicalxpress.com/news/2022-05-legalizing-marijuana-decrease-alcohol-pain.html
https://europeanlawblog.eu/2022/01/11/cannabis-legalization-in-germany-the-final-blow-to-european-drug-prohibition/
Recreational marijuana has a great relaxing effect when you grow it yourself. I love gardening, and when it became possible to grow cannabis on my own legally, I decided to try. I bought the best grow tents and great seeds. I found a lot of information on the Internet on how to grow cannabis and got to work. Now I always have a supply of excellent weed, and caring for and growing a plant allows me to relax even if I don't smoke it, lol. Therefore, if you use recreational marijuana, try to repeat my experience. I'm sure you'll like it.
Yesterday the New York State Senate introduced a bill for a Universal Basic Income pilot, to launch no later than January 1, 2023.
So on top of legalising cannabis for fun & pleasure, New York looks serious about UBI, which was once (not long ago) considered a utopian dream. I ❤️ NY, as they say.
Measure 91 was approved in 2014, legalizing non-medical cultivation and uses of marijuana in my state, Oregon, starting July 1, 2015. Herein lies a problem with a cash only business because federally, pot remains a Schedule I narcotic. Dispensaries can't open bank accounts, because the banks would risk federal prosecution for holding the money from a criminal enterprise. Not too long ago, a dispensary a few blocks from my home was held up at gunpoint.
https://www.wweek.com/news/courts/2021/03/03/for-nearly-a-year-teenagers-have-been-robbing-portland-dispensaries-then-somebody-shot-a-budtender/
It'll happen eventually because of supply/demand economics and everything.