Enacts the "marihuana regulation and taxation act"; relates to the description of marihuana, and the growing of and use of marihuana by persons eighteen years of age or older; makes technical changes regarding the definition of marihuana; relates to the qualification of certain offenses involving marihuana and exempts certain persons from prosecution for the use, consumption, display, production or distribution of marihuana; provides for the licensure of persons authorized to produce, process and sell marihuana; levies an excise tax on certain sales of marihuana; repeals certain provisions of the penal law relating to the criminal sale of marihuana and provisions of the general business law relating to drug paraphernalia.
NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A8341
SPONSOR: Peoples-Stokes (MS) TITLE OF BILL: An act to amend the public health law, in relation to
the description of marihuana, and the growing of and use of marihuana by
persons eighteen years of age or older; to amend the vehicle and traffic
law, in relation to making technical changes regarding the definition of
marihuana; to amend the penal law, in relation to the qualification of
certain offenses involving marihuana and to exempt certain persons from
prosecution for the use, consumption, display, production or distrib-
ution of marihuana; to amend the alcoholic beverage control law, in
relation to providing for the licensure of persons authorized to
produce, process and sell marihuana; to amend the tax law, in relation
to providing for the levying of an excise tax on certain sales of mari-
huana; to amend the criminal procedure law, the civil practice law and
rules, the general business law, the state finance law, the executive
law, the penal law and the vehicle and traffic law, in relation to
making conforming changes; to repeal sections 221.10, 221.25, 221.30,
221.50 and 221.55 of the penal law relating to the criminal possession
and sale of marihuana; and to repeal paragraph (f) of subdivision 2 of
section 850 of the general business law relating to drug related
paraphernalia
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:
Section one of the bill is the title.
Section two of the bill is comprised of legislative findings and state-
ments of purpose.
Section one of the bill is the title.
Section two of the bill is comprised of legislative findings and state-
ments of purpose.
Section three of the bill amends Section 3302 of the Public Health Law
to eliminate the definitions of Concentrated Cannabis and Marihuana from
the controlled substances act.
Section four of the bill amends Section 3306 of the Public Health Law to
remove the classification of marihuana as a schedule 1 hallucinogen on
the schedules of controlled substances.
Section five of the bill amends Section 3382 of the Public Health Law to
excluding home cultivation of up to 6 marihuana plants by individuals 18
years or older from the ban on growing cannabis.
Section six of the bill of the bill amends section 3397-b of the public
health law to make conforming changes in definition of marihuana.
Section seven of the bill amends Section 114 of the Vehicle and Traffic
Code adding marihuana and concentrated cannabis to the definition of
drug for purposes of driving under the influence.
Section eight of the bill amends Section 220.0 of the Penal Law to
include a definition for concentrated cannabis as a controlled
substance.
Sections nine to eleven of the bill of the bill update cross references
to amended sections of the penal law.
Section twelve of the bill amends Section 220.5 of the Penal Law to
exclude marihuana paraphernalia from criminal use of drug paraphernalia.
Section thirteen of the bill amends Section 221.05 of the Penal Law to
make unlawful possession of marihuana applicable to persons less than
eighteen years of age or who are burning marihuana.
Section fourteen of the bill amends Section 221.15 of the Penal Law to
redefine criminal possession of marihuana in the second degree as a
Class B misdemeanor.
Section fifteen of the bill amends Section 221.20 of the Penal Law to
redefine criminal possession of marihuana in the first degree as a Class
A misdemeanor.
Section sixteen of the bill repeals sections 221.25 and 221.3 of the
Penal Law, eliminating the previous definitions of Criminal possession
of marihuana in the first and second degrees.
Section seventeen of the bill adds a new section 221.25 of the Penal Law
allowing for home cultivation of up to six marihuana plants by persons
eighteen years of age or older.
Section eighteen of the bill amends section 221.35 of the Penal Law to
redefine Criminal sale of marihuana in the third degree to apply to
persons less than eighteen years of age.
Section nineteen of the bill amends section 221.40 of the Penal Law to
redefine of criminal sale of marihuana in the second degree.
Section twenty of the bill amends section 221.45 of the Penal law to
redefine criminal sale of marihuana in the first degree.
Section twenty-one of the bill repeals section 221.5 and 221.55 of the
Penal Law, eliminating the previous definitions of criminal sale of
marihuana in the first and second degrees.
Section twenty-two of the bill adds a new section 221.6 to the Penal Law
establishing that those acting in compliance with the Alcohol Beverage
Control Law are exempt from sections § 220 and § 221 of the New York
Penal Law
Section twenty-three of the bill amends subdivision 8 of section 1399-n
of the Public Health Law to include marihuana in list of substances
subject to smoking regulations.
Section twenty-four of the bill amends section 2 of the Alcoholic Bever-
age Control Law to include regulation of marihuana products in the
purpose of this chapter.
Section twenty-five of the bill amends section 3 of the Alcoholic Bever-
age Control Law to include definitions of Concentrated Cannabis, Mari-
huana, and Marihuana consumers, processors, producer, products, infused
products, retailer and retailer for the purposes of on-premises consump-
tion, and unreasonably impracticable.
Section twenty-five-a of the bill amends section 65-b of the Alcoholic
Beverage Control law to ban use of fraudulent documents for the purpose
of purchasing marihuana products by persons under twenty-one years of
age, and establishing procedures for sellers of marihuana products to
prevent such sales.
Section twenty-six of this bill amends section 140 of the Alcoholic
Beverage Control Law to extend the option of any town or city to ban
sale of alcoholic beverages to sales of marihuana.
Section twenty-seven of the bill amends section 141 of the Alcoholic
Beverage Control Law to apply the rules governing referendum procedures
for banning sales of alcohol by towns to sales of marihuana.
Section twenty-eight of the bill amends section 142 of the Alcoholic
Beverage Control Law to establish that sale of marihuana is prohibited
in any city that passes a referendum against such sales.
Section twenty-nine of the bill amends section 147 of the Alcoholic
Beverage Control Law to establish that if the rules regarding future
referendums will also apply to marihuana sales.
Section twenty-nine-a of the bill renumbers article 11 of the Alcoholic
Beverage Control Law as article eleven and sections 160, 161, 162, 163
and 164 as sections 200, 201, 202, 203 and 204.
Section thirty of the bill adds a new Article 11 to the Alcoholic Bever-
age Control Law providing for the regulation of marihuana production,
distribution and sale by the State Liquor Authority, establishing
licensing and permitting rules, and providing for penalties for
violations.
Section thirty-one of the bill adds a new Article 18-A to the New York
Tax Code imposing an excise tax of $50.00 per ounce on marihuana, and
establishing a formula for distribution of the proceeds of this tax,
with eighty five percent of proceeds going to the general fund and
fifteen percent of proceeds to be directed to re-entry programs,
substance abuse programs, and job training programs in low income, high
unemployment communities, and authorizing localities to enact a five
percent tax on marihuana sales.
Sections thirty-two through thirty-seven of the bill of the bill update
cross references to amended sections of the penal law.
Section thirty-eight and thirty-nine of the bill amend section 850 of
the General Business Law to remove references to marihuana from prohibi-
tions on the sale of drug paraphernalia.
Section forty of the bill update cross references in the state finance
law to amended sections in the alcoholic beverage control law.
Section forty-one through forty-three of the bill update cross refer-
ences to amended sections of the penal law.
Section forty-four is a severability clause.
Section forty of the bill is the effective date.
JUSTIFICATION: Present law fails to prevent the trade and consumption
of marihuana and has continued to foster a violent drug market that
consumes millions of dollars in resources every year.
New York State Ranks 2nd of all 50 states in terms of Marihuana related
arrests made per 100,000 people. In 2010, the NYPD made 50,300 marihuana
related arrests. This number amounted to one out of every seven total
arrests made, and spent $75 million arresting and jailing mostly young
people simply for possessing small amounts of marihuana."
The enforcement of present law has disproportionately effected African-
American and Latino communities; often giving first time, non-violent
offenders, an extraneous criminal record. Government health surveys find
that young whites use marihuana at higher rates than young blacks and
Latinos. But the NYPD arrests blacks for marihuana possession at seven
times the rate of whites and Latinos at nearly four times the rate of
whites.
Aside from mitigating these issues, the regulation and taxation act will
also help accrue revenue for the state; portions of which will go back
(through government agencies and programs) to communities that have been
impacted by present law.
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY: New Bill
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS FOR STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS: Increase revenue
for state and local governments. Fiscal implication assumptions for
similar legislation implemented in Colorado, Amendment 64, estimated an
annual revenue increase of 5-22 million dollars and an annual spending
increase of .5-1.5 million dollars. Given the larger population of New
York State this legislation should generate revenue substantially larger
than these estimates.
EFFECTIVE DATE: Immediately. Within 240 days of the effective date,
the State Liquor Authority shall enact provisions governing marihuana
licensing.
