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Medical marijuana could blunt the pain of New York's budget crunch.
Proponents of pot as a medicine have renewed their push for legalization, arguing that licensing fees and taxes could generate hundreds of millions of dollars a year in new revenues for the cash-strapped state.
"There is a huge amount of revenue here," said state Sen. Diane Savino (D-Staten Island) who hopes to make New York the 18th state to legalize medical marijuana.
The high-minded talk comes as the state is reeling from Hurricane Sandy bills – and as the pot industry has hired one of the most powerful lobbying firms in Albany to define the issue as a budding financial opportunity.
"It has real economic impact," said Patrick McCarthy, of the firm Patricia Lynch Associates.
The firm controlled by Pat Lynch, a former top aide to Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, was hired by Colorado-based marijuana company, Gaia Plant Based Medicine, to press lawmakers and Gov. Cuomo.
But the governor has offered only toking opposition.
"I understand the benefits, but there are also risks, and I think the risks outweigh the benefits at this point," Cuomo said earlier this year, even as he warned that Hurricane Sandy could add $1 billion to the state's budget deficit this year alone.
Cuomo said more research is needed to prove that legalizing medical marijuana will help people with problems such as cancer and multiple sclerosis, yet not increase drug abuse and criminal activity.
And the state's influential Conservative Party called legalization of medical marijuana "a horrible idea."
"It sends a wrong message to the youth of the state, and that's more important than any amount of revenue the state would take in," said party Chairman Mike Long.
The movement to legalize the once-demonized plant for medical use has spread like a weed in recent years.
The District of Columbia and 17 states have already legalized marijuana for medical purposes. In November, two states, Washington and Colorado, became the first to legalize pot for off-label – that is, recreational – use.
All medical marijuana states require the sick to obtain a prescription to maintain their healing buzz. Some require drug takers to pay an additional fee, as in the case of a hunting license.
After that, users can obtain the herb by buying it from licensed dispensaries or cultivating it themselves.
Despite its growing acceptance, medical marijuana remains controversial. Critics say that prescriptions are easy to obtain from the local "Dr. Feelgood," and last week, a 7-year-old girl suffering from leukemia grabbed headlines for becoming one of Oregon's youngest medical marijuana patients.
The girl's mother, Erin Purchase, gives her daughter marijuana pills to fight the side effects of chemotherapy, but her father thinks the drug is making things worse.
When the dad called police, cops told him there was nothing they could do because the girl's marijuana use is legal.
It's too early to say whether medical pot laws in New York would establish an age limit.
For now, the push is on the legislature and the governor to draft and pass a bill.
It's the humane thing to do, said Gabriel Sayegh, state director for the Drug Policy Alliance, who cited research that marijuana can effectively treat pain and other discomforts caused by cancer and other serious illnesses.
"If we saw Gov. Cuomo step into this, I think we'd see this thing move," said Sayegh. "The time for this has long passed."
It wouldn't be the first time state lawmakers got the munchies for once-unthinkable revenue streams such as the state lottery and other forms of gambling.
If so, New York would join a growing number of states – including border states New Jersey, Connecticut and Massachusetts – that are lighting up their coffers with ganja green.
The hiring of Lynch – whose firm has taken on many high-powered battles, including gay marriage – adds serious firepower to the battle.
Her client, Gaia, is pressing for the adoption of a "seed to sale" model in which state-sanctioned firms grow, distribute and sell herb to patients. The system, in place in Colorado, allows for start-to-finish tracking of the product and tight government regulation, McCarthy said.
"We have other states that have done it, so we have a lot to look at," added Savino. "There's no justification for saying 'No' anymore."
News Hawk- TruthSeekr420 420 MAGAZINE
Source: nydailynews.com
Author: Glenn Blain
Contact: Contact Us - NY Daily News
Website: Medical marijuana proponents in New York renew push for legalization - NY Daily News
Proponents of pot as a medicine have renewed their push for legalization, arguing that licensing fees and taxes could generate hundreds of millions of dollars a year in new revenues for the cash-strapped state.
"There is a huge amount of revenue here," said state Sen. Diane Savino (D-Staten Island) who hopes to make New York the 18th state to legalize medical marijuana.
The high-minded talk comes as the state is reeling from Hurricane Sandy bills – and as the pot industry has hired one of the most powerful lobbying firms in Albany to define the issue as a budding financial opportunity.
"It has real economic impact," said Patrick McCarthy, of the firm Patricia Lynch Associates.
The firm controlled by Pat Lynch, a former top aide to Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, was hired by Colorado-based marijuana company, Gaia Plant Based Medicine, to press lawmakers and Gov. Cuomo.
But the governor has offered only toking opposition.
"I understand the benefits, but there are also risks, and I think the risks outweigh the benefits at this point," Cuomo said earlier this year, even as he warned that Hurricane Sandy could add $1 billion to the state's budget deficit this year alone.
Cuomo said more research is needed to prove that legalizing medical marijuana will help people with problems such as cancer and multiple sclerosis, yet not increase drug abuse and criminal activity.
And the state's influential Conservative Party called legalization of medical marijuana "a horrible idea."
"It sends a wrong message to the youth of the state, and that's more important than any amount of revenue the state would take in," said party Chairman Mike Long.
The movement to legalize the once-demonized plant for medical use has spread like a weed in recent years.
The District of Columbia and 17 states have already legalized marijuana for medical purposes. In November, two states, Washington and Colorado, became the first to legalize pot for off-label – that is, recreational – use.
All medical marijuana states require the sick to obtain a prescription to maintain their healing buzz. Some require drug takers to pay an additional fee, as in the case of a hunting license.
After that, users can obtain the herb by buying it from licensed dispensaries or cultivating it themselves.
Despite its growing acceptance, medical marijuana remains controversial. Critics say that prescriptions are easy to obtain from the local "Dr. Feelgood," and last week, a 7-year-old girl suffering from leukemia grabbed headlines for becoming one of Oregon's youngest medical marijuana patients.
The girl's mother, Erin Purchase, gives her daughter marijuana pills to fight the side effects of chemotherapy, but her father thinks the drug is making things worse.
When the dad called police, cops told him there was nothing they could do because the girl's marijuana use is legal.
It's too early to say whether medical pot laws in New York would establish an age limit.
For now, the push is on the legislature and the governor to draft and pass a bill.
It's the humane thing to do, said Gabriel Sayegh, state director for the Drug Policy Alliance, who cited research that marijuana can effectively treat pain and other discomforts caused by cancer and other serious illnesses.
"If we saw Gov. Cuomo step into this, I think we'd see this thing move," said Sayegh. "The time for this has long passed."
It wouldn't be the first time state lawmakers got the munchies for once-unthinkable revenue streams such as the state lottery and other forms of gambling.
If so, New York would join a growing number of states – including border states New Jersey, Connecticut and Massachusetts – that are lighting up their coffers with ganja green.
The hiring of Lynch – whose firm has taken on many high-powered battles, including gay marriage – adds serious firepower to the battle.
Her client, Gaia, is pressing for the adoption of a "seed to sale" model in which state-sanctioned firms grow, distribute and sell herb to patients. The system, in place in Colorado, allows for start-to-finish tracking of the product and tight government regulation, McCarthy said.
"We have other states that have done it, so we have a lot to look at," added Savino. "There's no justification for saying 'No' anymore."
News Hawk- TruthSeekr420 420 MAGAZINE
Source: nydailynews.com
Author: Glenn Blain
Contact: Contact Us - NY Daily News
Website: Medical marijuana proponents in New York renew push for legalization - NY Daily News
