Murphy Vows To Legalize Marijuana; Cuomo Says DOH Should Launch Study
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) – During his inauguration ceremony, New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy took the opportunity to once again voice support for legalizing marijuana.
"A stronger and fairer New Jersey embraces comprehensive criminal justice reform comprehensively, and that includes a process to legalize marijuana," he said Tuesday.
As WCBS 880's Sean Adams reported, Murphy wasn't the only governor addressing the subject.
Last year, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo called marijuana a gateway drug. But when he looks around, perhaps he's reconsidered, Adams reported.
"New Jersey may legalize marijuana. Massachusetts already has," he said during his annual budget address.
Read More: NJ Marijuana Debate Heats Up Ahead Of Phil Murphy's Inauguration
U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions, however, sits on the other side of the debate.
"Attorney General Sessions says he's going to end marijuana in every state," said Cuomo.
The governor proposed that New York do some fact finding.
"I think we should fund DOH to do a study," he said.
Cuomo wants the Department of Health and state police to examine the costs, benefits and legal risks of recreational marijuana.
While Murphy sites criminal justice reform as his main motivation, there is a major financial incentive there, as well, Adams reported. Tax revenue from legal marijuana could net hundreds of millions of dollars.
