Nassau County Executive Laura Curran held a news conference last Thursday to announce the formation of a task force to prepare for the state Legislature’s expected legalization of the sale and possession of marijuana for recreational use by adults.
The task force, which is being chaired by Nassau County Police Commissioner Patrick Ryder and county Legislator Josh Lafazan, includes representatives of the Health Department, businesses, schools, village government, mental health professions and religious institutions.
“Given the breadth of potential impact for all County residents, the initial goal of this Task Force will be to develop a working understanding of the facts around marijuana legalization, and to accordingly pursue policy recommendations that will adequately prepare the County for what comes after legalization,” according to a news release issued by Curran’s office.
Curran’s creation of a task force is a sensible response to an anticipated, if not long overdue, change in state law.
We wish we could say the same for the Town of North Hempstead.
Two days before Curran’s news conference, Town Board members voted unanimously to bar the sale of recreational marijuana in North Hempstead.
The passage of the recreational marijuana sale ban is the third law aimed at regulating marijuana in North Hempstead in less than two months.
Previous legislation capped the number of state-regulated medical marijuana dispensaries in North Hempstead at two and limited them to out-of-the-way areas guaranteed to make life even harder for people suffering from cancer, AIDs and other serious illnesses.
Did the council’s three votes follow a report from a town task force that developed a working understanding of the facts around marijuana? No.
Did it follow a town study of the 10 states, the District of Columbia and Canada — all of which have legalized marijuana in the past five years? No.
Did the town’s three bills follow a town review of the recently released state report on the health, public safety and economic impact of legalizing marijuana by a wide range of experts and agency heads.
There is zero indication of that having happened.
Instead, Town Board members surrendered to the demands of a vocal group of residents rather than conducting a reasoned review of the facts.
Town council members said the vote barring the sale of recreational marijuana was in part a way to send a message to Albany to not rush the legalization recreational marijuana.
This turns the truth on its head.
Gov. Andrew Cuomo directed state agencies in January 2018 to evaluate the impact of legalizing marijuana. The state issued its report in July 2018. And the state Legislature is still considering the legislation.
There has been no rush on the part of the state, where the state Legislature has been debating the legalization of recreational marijuana for years.
The rush to judgment has been made by the Town Board.
The three town laws were approved within weeks of protests by residents and civic association members against a plan by MedMen, a medical marijuana dispensary company, to move from its Lake Success location to Northern Boulevard in Manhasset.
Town Supervisor Judi Bosworth as much as acknowledged this at the town council meeting.
“I think you could hear from the comments of all the members of this board that we understand very well the responsibility of the board, the responsibility to advocate for what’s important to our constituents and to represent all your interests and values,” Bosworth said.
Values? We hope not. Not unless the values of Bosworth’s constituents include shunting the sickest among us to out-of-the-way places to get the treatment they need. Or ignoring scientific studies in the face of emotion-based opposition.
The will of her constituents? We did hear the vocal complaints of a group of residents and civic association members who did not want a state-regulated medical marijuana facility that could one day become a recreational marijuana facility located in their neighborhood.
But we don’t recall the town actually putting the three laws to a vote. The town officials might be surprised if they did.
A recent Pew Report found that 62 percent of Americans favor the legalization of adult recreational marijuana.
Bosworth and Councilwoman Dina De Giorgio also cited health and safety concerns, especially for children, in casting their votes without citing any proof.
“Protecting your children – your children are our children, so we take that very, very seriously, and it’s always something we strive to do,” Bosworth said.
Actually, that’s not right, at least according to the experts who looked at the question.
Marijuana will actually be more difficult for youths to obtain in a regulated marijuana environment, according to the state report, and legalized marijuana has no or minimal impact on use by youth. It is also expected to reduce opioid deaths.
The town’s laws will also hurt local business districts, several of which are already dotted with empty storefronts.
Regulated marijuana is expected to generate tax revenue of between $248 million a year and $677 million a year as well as jobs.
But now, thanks to the Town Board, the sales, stores in which they are made and the people hired to staff the stores will go to Queens and Hempstead and Oyster Bay.
Good thing high taxes are not a concern in North Hempstead.
The Town Board has rushed to enact laws that in the end will hurt taxpayers, business districts and yes, children.
That’s a high price to pay for accommodating a vocal minority.
