ALBANY, N.Y. (Jan. 21, 2021) Bills intorduced in the New York House and Senate would legalize marijuana in the state despite federal prohibition on the same.
Assembly bill 1248 (A1248) and Senate bill 854 (S854), both introduced earlier this month with multiple sponsors, would legalize marijuana use by adults over the age of 21, and allow for the cultivation and sale of cannabis. The proposed law would also enact a marijuana regulation and taxation scheme and create several funds for the use of tax dollars, including the New York state drug treatment and public education fund.
EFFECT ON FEDERAL PROHIBITION
Under the federal Controlled Substances Act (CSA) passed in 1970, the federal government maintains complete prohibition of marijuana. Of course, the federal government lacks any constitutional authority to ban or regulate cannabis within the borders of a state, despite the opinion of the politically connected lawyers on the Supreme Court. If you doubt this, ask yourself why it took a constitutional amendment to institute federal alcohol prohibition.
New York legalized medical marijuana in 2016. The legalization of recreational cannabis would remove another layer of laws prohibiting the possession and use of marijuana in the state even though federal prohibition would remain in effect. This is significant because FBI statistics show that law enforcement makes approximately 99 of 100 marijuana arrests under state, not federal law. When states stop enforcing marijuana laws, they sweep away most of the basis for 99 percent of marijuana arrests.
Furthermore, figures indicate it would take 40 percent of the DEA’s yearly-budget just to investigate and raid all of the dispensaries in Los Angeles – a single city in a single state. That doesn’t include the cost of prosecution. The lesson? The feds lack the resources to enforce marijuana prohibition without state assistance.
A GROWING MOVEMENT
New York could join a growing number of states simply ignoring federal prohibition and nullifying it in practice.
Colorado, Washington state, Oregon and Alaska were the first states to legalize recreational cannabis, and California, Nevada, Maine and Massachusetts joined them after ballot initiatives in favor of legalization passed in November 2016. Michigan followed suit when voters legalized cannabis for general use in 2018. Vermont became the first state to legalize marijuana through a legislative act in 2018. Illinois followed suit in 2019. South Dakota, New Jersey, Montana and Arizona all legalized recreational marijuana through ballot measures in the 2020 election and Mississippi legalized medicinal cannabis.
With 36 states now allowing cannabis for medical use, and 15 legalizing for recreational adult-use, the feds find themselves in a position where they simply can’t enforce prohibition anymore.
The lesson here is pretty straightforward. When enough people say, ‘No!’ to the federal government, and enough states pass laws backing those people up, there’s not much the feds can do to shove their so-called laws, regulations or mandates down our throats.
WHAT’S NEXT
The bills are currently in committee – A1248 in the Codes Committee, and S00854 in the Senate Finance Committee. They must pass with a majority to move forward in the legislative process.
The post New York Bills Would Legalize Marijuana Despite Federal Prohibition first appeared on Tenth Amendment Center Blog.
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