The state's current budget deficit is in the neighborhood of $14 billion and in New York State there is continued speculation that those sitting in Albany could turn to recreational marijuana as a revenue source.

Marijuana activists are poised for a major victory in New York as state lawmakers think about a plan to legalize and tax cannabis.

The COVID-19 pandemic, together with the restrictions imposed on business due to the pandemic, has wrecked havoc on the state and resulted in tax revenues reaching new lows.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo has been seen as strongly backing marijuana legislation and hopes to persuade governors and voters in surrounding states to adopt similar laws backing recreational cannabis.

Lawmakers in New York last year failed to agree on the several issues in the move to back recreational marijuana.

Cuomo's proposal is similar to plans proposed by Democratic state legislators and creates a new Office of Cannabis Management to oversee and regulate the entire industry.

At New Yorker's for Constitutional Freedoms there is no support for this type of legislation.

Dr. Kevin Sabet, president of Smart Approaches to Marijuana points out, “legalizing marijuana involves the massive administration costs of creating a new regulatory regime.”

Dr. Sabet also argues that “the last thing you want to do is encourage something that's bad for your lungs and your respiratory system during a respiratory pandemic.”