It’s finally happening – and everyone is freaking out. New York is going to legalize cannabis and it’s happening quickly. And it seems like kind of an awesome plan – complete with lounges.
Isn’t it ironic?
While the ironic lyric is purely Canadian, the irony of fast-tracked legalization is not. It used to be few politician wanted to touch legalization, leaving it to voters to make the difficult decisions (think Colorado, California, Washington, Oregon, etc.). But, amidst political chaos and crisis in New York (nursing homes + vaccines + sexual misconduct = Cuomo), legalizing cannabis was the easy, popular and distracting decision.
What are we talking about
- It’s a big market. Like really big. $4 billion big (according to the NY Times). Adding that to other major markets that have recently come on line or will in the near future: Michigan, Illinois, Arizona and New Jersey – the US market is poised for hockey stick growth.
- The plan seems to include a fair amount of juicy stuff. Including delivery, consumption lounges and a 6-plant personal grow allowance.
- Most importantly, the plan in New York has significant social justice considerations. According to the NY Times: “…Millions of dollars in tax revenue from cannabis sales would be reinvested in minority communities each year, and a sizable portion of business licenses would be reserved for minority business owners…”
What’s next
Well, New York needs to figure out how to regulate the cultivation and sale of cannabis and all the nitty-gritty regulatory details. Our view is that the more large states that legalize (New York, Pennsylvania, Florida) the more smaller states will have no choice but to follow (think tax dollars, tourism, post-COVID job booms).
Bottom line: If you can(nabis) make it there, you can(nabis) make it anywhere…
