2021 is coming to a close—and seriously, how did that happen so fast? Since it’s that time of year to reflect on the year that was, these were some of the biggest stories in weed in 2021:

The War on Drugs Wages On at the Olympics

Sha’Carri Richardson was denied the chance to compete in the Tokyo Summer Olympics because she tested positive for THC. Richardson dominated the women’s 100-meter qualifying race at the U.S. Olympic Track and Field Trials in Eugene, Oregon. However, the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) prohibited her from competing after the positive test.

“Richardson’s competitive results obtained on June 19, 2021, including her Olympic qualifying results at the Team Trials, have been disqualified, and she forfeits any medals, points, and prizes,” a statement from the USADA said.

Richardson, who had just learned about her mother’s death, consumed marijuana in Oregon, a legal cannabis state. Despite the lack of evidence that marijuana or THC enhances athletic ability and a petition signed by more than half a million people, Richardson could not compete.

 

Colorado Lawmakers Want to Reduce Access to Medical Marijuana Concentrates

Colorado’s Speaker of the House, Alec Garnett (D-Denver), introduced legislation to tighten rules for medical marijuana and marijuana concentrates. The Colorado Legislature passed HB 1317 in June, and Governor Jared Polis (D-Colorado), signed the bill into law in the same month.

A new state tracking system will monitor medical marijuana patients’ purchases to prevent them from buying more than the allowed daily limit. Additionally, the law lowered the purchase limit on concentrates for medical and recreational to 8 grams per day, down from the previous 40-gram limit. For medical marijuana patients between the ages of 18-20, the limit on concentrates was lowered to two grams per day.

 

Amazon Drops Marijuana Testing for Employees, Supports Legalization

Amazon, one of the largest employers in the United States, dropped drug testing for applicants and employees this year.

“We will no longer include marijuana in our comprehensive drug screening program for any positions not regulated by the Department of Transportation, and will instead treat it the same as alcohol use. We will continue to do impairment checks on the job and will test for all drugs and alcohol after any incident,” the company said in a blog post.

Going one step further, the company said that they would actively lobby Congress to pass the Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement (MORE) Act, which would legalize cannabis nationally.

Dems Move to Legalize Marijuana Nationwide in 2021, Improve Access to Banking

This may be the biggest story that wasn’t. We’re at the end of 2021, and there still hasn’t been any movement on ending the prohibition on cannabis or improving access to banking.

Several marijuana legalization and banking bills were introduced in the last few years, including the MORE Act and the SAFE Banking Act. In 2020, the House passed the MORE Act, but it never received a hearing in the Senate. The House passed different versions of the SAFE Banking Act five times, but like the MORE Act, it stalled in the Senate.

One of the sponsors of the SAFE Banking Act, Rep. Ed Perlmutter (D-CO), said in a statement, “[P]eople are still getting killed and businesses are still getting robbed because of a lack of action from the Senate. The SAFE Banking Act has been sitting in the Senate for three years and with every passing day their unwillingness to deal with the issue endangers and harms businesses, their employees, and communities across the country.”

Youth Marijuana Use Shows No Increase with Legalization

In states that have legalized adult-use marijuana, youth marijuana use has not increased.

A study published in JAMA Pediatrics found that teen marijuana use decreased after legalization. Researchers analyzed data from 1.4 million high school students between 1993 and 2017 and found an 8 percent decrease in teen use after states legalized recreational marijuana.

The U.S. Department of Education’s National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) analyzed ten years of data from students in grades 9-12 who reported marijuana use in the previous 30 days. They found that between 2009 and 2019, youth marijuana use has remained essentially unchanged.

“The overall percentage of students who reported using marijuana at least 1 time during the previous 30 days in 2019 was not measurably different from the percentage in 2009…. There was no measurable difference between 2009 and 2019 in the percentage of students who reported that illegal drugs were made available to them on school property.”

The findings are consistent with prior data concerning youth marijuana use.

Love ’em or hate ’em, cannabis and celebrity partnerships are here to stay. Here are a few of the biggest names who have gone all-in on marijuana:

Mike Tyson

One of the greatest heavyweight boxers of all time, Mike Tyson was once more well known for his controversial behavior than his cannabis advocacy. And, well, maybe he is still more well-known for the whole ear-biting thing, but these days, Tyson has mellowed out. After launching and closing down his first canna-biz –  the Tyson Ranch, he’s ready for the next big thing.

“My life was just miserable, I was out of control. I was fighting with everybody. If someone asked me for an autograph, I’d punch them in the face. I was just a mess, and then after I retired, I started smoking,” Tyson said. “What a mistake that was — I should have smoked my whole career. I should have smoked when I was fighting because it put me in this different state of mind. I’m very relaxed and the more relaxed you are, the better fighter you are at least in my case.”

Iron Mike credits his most recent comeback to cannabis—so much so that he partnered with Columbia Care to release his own cannabis line, Tyson 2.0

 

Allen Iverson

NBA legend Allen Iverson launched the Iverson Collection, a line of cannabis products created in partnership with fellow NBA alum Al Harrington’s cannabis brand, Viola. Not your everyday cannabis, the first strain in the Iverson Collection was designed to taste like Dom Pérignon champagne.

The irony of creating a cannabis line isn’t lost on Iverson, who was once arrested and charged with misdemeanor marijuana possession in Virginia.

“I could hear the people in the crowd calling me weed head on the road. It was bad and now all these years later look where we are and how far we’ve come,” he told Bleacher Report.

 

Josh Blue

And, of course, we can’t talk about cannabis and celebrity partnerships without mentioning Josh Blue. Most recently a finalist on America’s Got Talent, Josh Blue is a stand-up comedian with a long history in the cannabis community. Blue partnered with Mountain High Suckers to create Josh Blue’s Dream Suckers, a THC- and CBD-infused edible.

 

Jim Belushi

A comedian and actor extraordinaire, Jim Belushi didn’t partner with a cannabis company. He went all in and started a cannabis farm in Oregon called Belushi’s Farm. Belushi, who uses cannabis to treat his PTSD, is also a cannabis advocate. In addition to his work with veterans suffering from PTSD, Belushi is also a board member for The Last Prisoner Project, a non-profit committed to cannabis criminal justice reform.

Belushi told High Times, “It’s humiliating to the men and women who are incarcerated from the failed War on Drugs, and it also collapses the fabric of their families. It’s time to get these nonviolent cannabis prisoners out. There are millions of dollars being made in our industry today, and these men and women really are the ones who laid the groundwork for our industry, and they’re in jail.”

 

Seth Rogen and Sarah Silverman

Famous stoner comedians Seth Rogen and Sarah Silverman are using their celebrity to advocate for federal marijuana legalization. They’ve partnered with Cannabis in Common to pressure lawmakers in Congress to end cannabis prohibition.

“Americans can’t agree on anything can we?” Silverman asked in a promotional video. “Fortunately there is at least one thing most Americans have in common: more than two-thirds of us agree cannabis should be legalized and we have a real shot at getting federal legalization done now if we speak up.”

Rogen launched his own line of cannabis, dubbed Houseplant, in Canada after marijuana was legalized there in 2018.

 

Justin Bieber

Pop star Justin Bieber is the latest celebrity to jump on the cannabis bandwagon by partnering with Palms Premium, a brand of cannabis pre-rolls. The line of pre-rolls is sold under the name “Peaches,” a reference to his song of the same name.

“I’m a fan of Palms and what they are doing by making cannabis approachable and helping to destigmatize it—especially for the many people who find it helpful for their mental health. I wanted to make sure that I was doing something with them that felt genuine and Peaches felt like a good place to start,” Bieber said.

Voting is over, and the results are in. Read on to find out how cannabis initiatives fared in this year’s Colorado elections.

Colorado

Colorado voters rejected a statewide ballot measure that would have increased the sales tax on recreational marijuana. Proposition 119 would have increased recreational marijuana sales tax by 5 percent to fund private after-school and tutoring programs. The initiative failed by 54.41 percent to 45.59 percent.

Peter Marcus, a spokesman for Boulder-based cannabis company Terrapin, said Proposition 119 was a “misguided policy.”

“Despite being significantly outspent by proponents, Colorado voters still soundly rejected using cannabis as a piggy bank for out-of-state special interest projects. Coloradans understand that lawmakers struck an appropriate balance when they planned for cannabis taxes. Disrupting that system would only set successful regulation back. We can’t balance the state budget and education on the backs of cannabis consumers; we need long-term solutions that address structural deficiencies,” Marcus said after Proposition 119’s defeat.

Denver

In Denver, another marijuana sales tax increase was on the ballot. Initiative 300 would have increased the recreational cannabis sales tax by 1.5 percent to fund pandemic research at the University of Colorado Denver City Center.

“Denver voters recognized that this measure — funded by an out-of-town billionaire — taxes people’s pain relief to pay for a random, pandemic preparation program that has no accountability, no oversight, no specific solutions, no connection to the marijuana industry and no relationship to core city services. We are hopeful that the city’s business community will oppose any future efforts to increase taxes on the Denver cannabis industry just as they would for any other industry in the city,” Chuck Smith of the cannabis business organization Colorado Leads told Westword.

An out-of-state special interest group funded the initiative, and CU Denver was not involved in getting the measure on the ballot. The vote was no/against the initiative by 60.35 percent to 39.65 percent.

Golden, Westminster, and Brighton

By a slim 58.68 percent to 49.60 percent margin, voters in Golden decided to lift the moratorium on recreational marijuana dispensaries in the city. Cannabis cultivation, extraction, and manufacturing are still a no-no in city limits. Still, marijuana sales will finally be a reality in Golden after the city council drafts and implements rules.

However, it doesn’t look like adult-use marijuana dispensaries will be coming to Westminster anytime soon. Despite voting “yes” on allowing retail marijuana in the city by 53 percent, voters said “no” to a separate tax measure tied to the initiative.

Brighton was a definite “no” on repealing the ban on recreational marijuana sales. Voters rejected the measure by 53 percent.

Lakewood

Lakewood’s sales tax on recreational marijuana will remain at 19.6 percent after voters rejected a measure to increase the tax rate by an additional 5 percent. If the initiative had passed, the City of Lakewood would have been able to increase the tax on adult-use marijuana by up to 10 percent without further voter approval.

Mead, Lamar, and Wellington

It turns out that 3 wasn’t a magic number in Mead, where voters rejected a ban on medical and recreational marijuana sales for the third time since 2013. 61 percent of voters rejected the measure.

There was better cannabis election news in Lamar, where voters approved two marijuana-related measures. 54 percent of voters approved Ballot Measure 2B, legalizing recreational marijuana sales. 55 percent of voters approved Ballot Measure 2A for a 5 percent local tax on adult-use cannabis sales.

In Wellington, the vote on Initiative 2B is still too close to call. As in, a 3-vote difference too close to call. The initiative would allow medical and recreational sales in Wellington. With a total of 3,341 votes counted so far, 1,672 voters said “yes,” while 1,669 voters said “no” to the measure.

However, it’s not so close when it comes to Initiative 300, the vote on whether to implement a 3.5 percent sales tax on adult-use marijuana purchases. The initiative looks like it will pass, with 231 “yes” votes in the lead.

Marijuana may be legal in Colorado, but there’s a slew of marijuana-related initiatives on the ballot this year.

Colorado

Statewide, Colorado voters will decide whether to increase the sales tax on recreational marijuana to fund after-school and tutoring programs for low-income and underserved youth.

Proposition 119, also known as the State Learning and Academic Progress Initiative (Leap), would give families earning between $25,000 and $50,000 a yearly stipend of $1,500 for after-school programs. Supporters of the initiative say the money would help close income-related learning gaps, which have been particularly exacerbated during the coronavirus pandemic.

If the initiative is approved, it will raise marijuana taxes from 15 percent to 20 percent. Local governments add their own marijuana sales and industry taxes, so the tax on recreational marijuana would go from 26.4 percent to 31.4 percent in Denver.

The state’s largest teachers union, the Colorado Education Association, initially supported the initiative. However, they withdrew their support and adopted a neutral stance over oversight issues and a lack of information about how the program would be implemented. In particular, they noted that the program may not be as accessible for rural students and that it funnels money toward private, for-profit programs while doing nothing to fund public schools.

State marijuana proponents oppose the ballot measure, arguing that increasing an already hefty tax on recreational marijuana could push people to the black market, as well as detract from social equity initiatives.

Denver

In Denver, voters will decide whether to increase the recreational marijuana sales tax by 1.5 percent to fund pandemic research. Initiative 300 would raise around $7 million annually to fund the University of Colorado Denver CityCenter for research.

Denver Mayor Michael Hancock opposes the initiative. On Facebook, he wrote, “While we continue to grapple with the impacts of COVID-19, adding a cost burden to just Denver voters seems unfair. Let’s rely on our national research institutions to do this work and share the responsibility more broadly than just Denver taxpayers.”

The initiative was sponsored by a Delaware-registered advocacy group, Guarding Against Pandemics. The University of Colorado was not involved in the initiative, and they don’t have any plan on how to use the funds.

Golden, Westminster, and Brighton

Three Colorado suburbs may finally have the chance to open recreational marijuana dispensaries thanks to initiatives on the ballot in Golden, Westminster, and Brighton.

After recreational cannabis was legalized in the state, the city council in Golden placed a moratorium on adult-use marijuana businesses in the city. If voters approve the measure, recreational dispensaries could open their doors. Marijuana cultivation, extraction, or manufacturing facilities would still be off the table.

Similarly, Westminster banned marijuana sales in 2013. However, ballot measures presented by the city council would all adult-use marijuana dispensaries and create a new local sales tax.

Brighton City Council banned marijuana sales after it was legalized in 2012, but this year voters in the city will vote on whether to allow recreational marijuana dispensaries as well as create a 4 percent local sales tax.

Lakewood

This year it’s all about taxes as Lakewood voters weigh in on a special marijuana sales tax that would help fund the city. If approved, local taxes on recreational marijuana would be set at 5 percent, with the City of Lakewood retaining the right to increase the tax up to 10 percent without further voter approval. Currently, Lakewood’s overall sales tax for recreational marijuana is 19.6 percent. The sales tax increase would raise around $2.9 million per year for Lakewood.

Mead, Lamar, and Wellington

Three rural Colorado towns will also vote this November on whether to allow recreational cannabis sales.

In Wellington, Initiative 2B would allow medical and recreational marijuana sales, and Issue 300 would implement a 3.5 sales tax on recreational marijuana purchases.

A voter-backed initiative in Mead could end the prohibition of marijuana sales in the town. A similar measure failed in 2019.

Lamar has two separate ballot initiatives that would end the ban on medical and recreational marijuana sales. Ballot Question 2B would allow marijuana dispensaries, cultivation, extraction, and manufacturing, while Ballot Issue 2A would create a 5 percent local tax on recreational marijuana sales. The city would have the right to raise adult-use marijuana taxes up to 15 percent without further voter approval.

Researchers could have access to retail cannabis as part of the infrastructure bill passed in the Senate last week.

What does marijuana have to do with infrastructure? Well, nothing, sort of. The provision included in the bill would require the US transportation secretary to develop a public report on the risk of cannabis-impaired driving within two years. As part of creating that report, researchers would have access to high-quality cannabis from state-approved dispensaries.

Scientists studying marijuana have been limited to notoriously poor-quality cannabis from the government-run research facility out of the University of Mississippi. The provision in the infrastructure bill would enable researchers to study the actual marijuana that people are consuming.

Additionally, the public report must include advice to lawmakers on how to set up a “national clearinghouse to collect and distribute samples and strains of marijuana for scientific research that includes marijuana and products containing marijuana lawfully available to patients or consumers in a state on a retail basis.”

In states that haven’t legalized either medical or recreational marijuana, this clearinghouse would ensure scientists’ access to high-quality cannabis from dispensaries in legal states.

If the new marijuana reform rules pass, states with legal medical or recreational marijuana would be required to develop programs to “educate drivers regarding the risks associated with marijuana-impaired driving” and “to reduce injuries and deaths resulting from individuals driving motor vehicles while impaired by marijuana.”

Senator John Hickenlooper (D-CO) sponsored the marijuana reform amendment that was included in the infrastructure bill.

“Colorado led the way on marijuana legalization,” Hickenlooper said in a press release. “The federal government needs to catch up by lifting outdated restrictions on the scientific study of cannabis so we can prevent driving while high.”

The Senate approved the infrastructure bill containing the marijuana reform provision by a 69-30 vote. Next, the bill will go to the House for approval before heading to President Biden’s desk for his signature.

Surgeon General supports marijuana decriminalization

During an interview with CNN, US Surgeon General Vivek Murthy, MD, said that he thinks it’s time to stop incarcerating people for marijuana.

“When it comes to decriminalization, I don’t think that there is value to individuals or to society to lock people up for marijuana use. I don’t think that serves anybody well.”

Murthy was commenting on new draft legislation to repeal federal marijuana prohibition introduced by Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) last week.

“In terms of our approach to marijuana, I worry when we don’t let science guide our process and policymaking and as Surgeon General that’s my role, is to work with policymakers who work with members in the community and the general public to help people understand what science tells us and where you gaps, to help fill those gaps with research and with honest inquiry.”

MMJ patient sues Governor Polis over new medical marijuana regulations

In June, Colorado Governor Jared Polis signed House Bill 1317, which added a host of new restrictions to the state’s medical-marijuana program.

Under the new law, physicians must prescribe a THC dosage amount and method of consumption and refer the patient for medical and mental health reviews. In addition, all medical marijuana purchases must be entered into a new tracking system, and patients are limited as to the amount of medical marijuana concentrate they can purchase.

Proponents of House Bill 1317 said the legislation was aimed at curbing youth use of marijuana concentrates.

“The reality is that it’s too easy for Colorado’s youth to access high-potency marijuana when they shouldn’t be able to, and we don’t have the full picture of how these products impact the developing brain,” Garnett said at the bill signing. “This law will help educate consumers about high-potency cannabis, and it will advance critical research that will give us a better understanding of how high-potency products impact developing brains,” said House Speaker Alec Garnett, who introduced the legislation.

However, medical marijuana advocates feel that the new law adds unnecessary hurdles for patients and physicians.

Benjamin Wann, a nineteen-year-old medical marijuana patient who uses cannabis to treat seizures, is suing the governor over the new restrictions. Wann and his parents, Amber and Brad, say that the governor and legislators failed to include the medical marijuana community in their policymaking.

“Polis didn’t have a conversation with us. We reached out, and had a rally in front of his office after it passed. I don’t know of anyone in the community who he had a conversation with, especially those of us who just passed that other bill,” Brad told Westword.

The Wann family was with the governor on May 6 as he signed a bill into law that expanded medical marijuana access to underage patients in public schools.

“We’ve seen a roller-coaster effect over the years with Benjamin having seizures. People keep saying [marijuana] is so bad for the developing brain, and here’s Benjamin, and we’ve literally seen him flourish and grow from it,” Amber said.

Denver receives first marijuana delivery application

In April, the Denver City Council passed a bill to (finally) allow marijuana delivery and consumption lounges in the city. Now, the City of Denver has received its first application for a marijuana delivery permit.

“We are kind of accustomed to getting everything delivered. Our groceries, our medicine, our clothing, our basic needs. So now this is just one thing we can deliver and provide that type of service,” said Dooba owner Karina Cohen.

The same restrictions that apply to purchasing cannabis in a dispensary will apply to the new delivery service. Cannabis delivery will only be available to a residential address to a person with a valid ID. Purchases will be limited to one ounce of flower, 8 grams of concentrate, or edibles containing 800 milligrams of THC.

Instead of cheering for U.S. track sensation Sha’Carri Richardson later this month during the Tokyo Olympics, Americans won’t be able to see the 21-year-old compete at all.

Richardson dusted the competition in the women’s 100-meter race at the U.S. Olympic Track and Field Trials in Eugene, Oregon. However, following her qualifying race, Richardson tested positive for THC. According to the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA), the positive test disqualified her from competing—despite zero evidence that marijuana enhances athletic ability. Plus, Richardson used cannabis in Oregon, a state where it’s legal.

“Richardson’s competitive results obtained on June 19, 2021, including her Olympic qualifying results at the Team Trials, have been disqualified, and she forfeits any medals, points, and prizes,” a statement from the USADA said.

Richardson was banned for 30 days, which means she’ll miss the 100-meter race in Tokyo. There was some hope that she would still run during the women’s 4×100-meter relay, but she wasn’t on the roster released by USA Track and Field (USATF).

“First and foremost, we are incredibly sympathetic toward Sha’Carri Richardson’s extenuating circumstances and strongly applaud her accountability — and will offer her our continued support both on and off the track,” a statement from officials at USATF said.

“While USATF fully agrees that the merit of the World Anti-Doping Agency rules related to THC should be reevaluated, it would be detrimental to the integrity of the U.S. Olympic Team Trials for Track & Field if USATF amended its policies following competition, only weeks before the Olympic Games.

There has been widespread criticism of disqualifying Richardson, including a petition signed by more than half a million people to allow Richardson to compete.

Members of the House Subcommittee on Civil Rights & Civil Liberties sent a letter calling on officials to reverse the ban.

“We urge you to reconsider the policies that led to this and other suspensions for recreational marijuana use, and to reconsider Ms. Richardson’s suspension. Please strike a blow for civil liberties and civil rights by reversing this course you are on,” the letter read. “The divergent treatment of recreational alcohol and marijuana use reflects obsolete stereotypes about cannabis products and a profound misunderstanding of the relative risks of both substances.”

Amazon announced that it supports nationwide cannabis legalization and will no longer test most job applicants for marijuana use.

“We will no longer include marijuana in our comprehensive drug screening program for any positions not regulated by the Department of Transportation, and will instead treat it the same as alcohol use. We will continue to do impairment checks on the job and will test for all drugs and alcohol after any incident,” the company said in a blog post.

Additionally, the company said they would actively lobby Congress to pass the Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement (MORE) Act, which would legalize cannabis nationally.

“And because we know that this issue is bigger than Amazon, our public policy team will be actively supporting The Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement Act of 2021 (MORE Act)—federal legislation that would legalize marijuana at the federal level, expunge criminal records, and invest in impacted communities. We hope that other employers will join us, and that policymakers will act swiftly to pass this law,” according to Amazon’s blog.

Support for legalization and dropping drug testing for employees is a huge change for the second-largest private employer in the U.S. Prior to this announcement, the company disqualified people who tested positive for marijuana use from employment.

For example, in March, the company was sued by a man who said that the company reversed a hiring offer because of marijuana use—testing prospective employees for marijuana has been banned in New York City.

The Drug Policy Alliance expressed support in a statement in response to the policy change.

Drug testing has never provided an accurate indication of a person’s ability to perform their job, and yet this incredibly invasive practice has locked out millions of people who use drugs—both licit and illicit—from the workplace.”

However, the advocacy group urged Amazon to go further by ending all drug testing and supporting policies that promote equity for people of color.

“We implore Amazon and other employers to let this be the starting point and not the goal post. This change can and should be the catalyst to a much larger move—ending drug testing for all drugs—that would ensure a more just and equitable future for millions of people, especially Black, Brown and Indigenous communities who have been disproportionately impacted by these policies.”

According to a federal study, states that have legalized adult-use marijuana have not seen an increase in either youth marijuana use or availability.

The U.S. Department of Education’s National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) analyzed ten years of data from students in grades 9-12 who reported marijuana use in the previous 30 days. They found that between 2009 and 2019, youth marijuana use has remained essentially unchanged.

“The overall percentage of students who reported using marijuana at least 1 time during the previous 30 days in 2019 was not measurably different from the percentage in 2009…. There was no measurable difference between 2009 and 2019 in the percentage of students who reported that illegal drugs were made available to them on school property.”

The findings are consistent with prior data concerning youth marijuana use.

Despite the claim by cannabis opponents that marijuana use among teens would increase with legalization, the data tells a different story. In 2009, before the first recreational dispensaries opened, 21 percent of high school students reported cannabis use within the previous 30 days. In 2019, with recreational cannabis legal in 17 states, 22 percent of students reported recently using marijuana.

The percentage of high school students who use marijuana has remained consistent both before and after statewide cannabis legalization.

The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) biennial Healthy Kids Colorado Survey found similar results.

“Youth marijuana use has not significantly changed since legalization, but the way youth are using marijuana is changing. In 2019, 20.6% of youth said they use marijuana compared to 19.4% in 2017. More youth are now vaping marijuana — 10.6% in 2019 compared to 5.1% in 2015. Dabbing rose from 4.3% in 2015 to 20.4% in 2019,” according to a press release.

A study published in JAMA Pediatrics found that teen marijuana use decreased after legalization. Researchers analyzed data from 1.4 million high school students between 1993 and 2017 and found an 8 percent decrease in teen use after states legalized recreational marijuana.

“Consistent with the results of previous researchers, there was no evidence that the legalization of medical marijuana encourages marijuana use among youth. Moreover, the estimates reported…showed that marijuana use among youth may actually decline after legalization for recreational purposes.”

New York state has legalized adult-use marijuana, becoming the 15th state in the country to end cannabis prohibition.

In addition to legalizing recreational cannabis, the legislation that Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) signed into law last Wednesday will expunge the records of people with a previous marijuana conviction.

“This is a historic day in New York — one that rights the wrongs of the past by putting an end to harsh prison sentences, embraces an industry that will grow the Empire State’s economy, and prioritizes marginalized communities so those that have suffered the most will be the first to reap the benefits,” Cuomo said in a statement. “I’m proud these comprehensive reforms address and balance the social equity, safety and economic impacts of legal adult-use cannabis.”

Keep in mind that marijuana sales won’t start immediately, as the state needs time to establish a regulatory framework. The first cannabis sales are expected to begin in 2022.

Under the new law, adults can possess up to 3 ounces of cannabis and 24 grams of concentrate and cultivate up to three mature and three immature cannabis plants. Social consumption sites and weed delivery will be permitted.

Tax revenue from recreational marijuana sales will go towards education, a community grants reinvestment fund, and a drug treatment and public education fund. The state estimates that legalizing marijuana will create 30,000 to 60,000 jobs in the state.

New York’s neighbor, New Jersey, legalized recreational marijuana earlier this year.

“We expect 2021 to be a record-breaking year for legislatures legalizing cannabis,” Steve Hawkins, executive director at the Marijuana Policy Project, said in a statement. “More than two-thirds of Americans believe it’s time to end prohibition and this move represents the latest example of elected officials joining the chorus of support for legalizing and regulating cannabis for adults.”