Title:
NYC Comptroller’s office calls for end to marijuana prohibition
Message:
John Liu says regulations would reduce harm
On Wednesday, the New York City Comptroller’s office made a groundbreaking announcement: it proposed regulating and taxing marijuana for sale to adults 21 and over. In a formal statement, Comptroller John Liu argued that “New York City’s misguided war on marijuana has failed, and its enforcement has damaged far too many lives, especially in minority communities.”
Liu, who is also a candidate for mayor, added that “regulating marijuana would keep thousands of New Yorkers out of the criminal justice system, offer relief to those suffering from a wide range of painful medical conditions, and make our streets safer by sapping the dangerous underground market that targets our children.”
The city comptroller’s position isn’t likely to result in any immediate changes in Albany, where politicians have repeatedly failed to pass much more limited reforms, such as New York’s medical marijuana bill. However, we applaud John Liu and the city comptroller’s office for making this reasonable argument in favor of reform!
Liu’s statement generated coverage in the New York Post and other prominent media outlets. Click here if you’d like to submit a letter to the Post supporting Liu’s proposal.
New York City’s primary elections will take place on Tuesday, September 10. To register to vote and locate your polling place, visit the NYC Board of Elections’ website.
