A clear path to marijuana reform

Manhattan: Your Feb. 21 editorial (“A watched pot,”) is right that improvements to Gov. Cuomo’s marijuana legalization plan “looks more promising than prior years’ efforts.” But there is more work to be done to deliver justice to the communities that have been hit hard by the decades-long war on drugs. The devil, as they say, is in the details. Community reinvestment from marijuana tax proceeds must be higher than the current proposal from the governor and this revenue stream has to be enshrined in the law — as it is in the Marijuana Regulation and Taxation Act.

In addition, the structure and governance of the Office of Cannabis Management must be constituted to center equity within the new industry and have real accountability mechanisms.

The improvements we see in the governor’s amendments to his plan take a few steps forward, but the solution is already in front of him and the Legislature: pass the Marijuana Regulation and Taxation Act for real justice.

73 74