Marijuana

Magnolia Bakery has high hopes for its cannabis-infused treats and is expanding to finally sell them in New York.

Thousands of marijuana shops boldly opened without a license in New York City after the state legalized recreational use of the drug, but after more than a year of lax enforcement, new state rules are finally allowing officials to padlock their doors. New York City’s sheriff’s office says it has shuttered around 700 illegal stores since new state regulations passed in...

Marc Santia reporting on bodegas busted for selling illegal marijuana products. 

Governor Hochul and Mayor Adams hosted a press conference today to discuss the closing of illegal cannabis shops and the effort to open more legal ones. NBC New York’s Erica Byfield reports. 

Martha’s Vineyard is about to run out of pot, prompting a lawsuit. Thousands of registered medical users and recreational ones could be affected.

The owner of seven unlicensed cannabis shops in New York whose promotions included an Easter egg hunt has been fined more than $15 million after state officials complained he repeatedly ignored notices to stop operating without approval, authorities said. A state Supreme Court justice in Lyons, New York, imposed the fine against David Tulley on Wednesday. Acting Justice Richard Healy penalized...

Millions of people in the U.S. report using marijuana daily or nearly every day, and those people now outnumber those who say they are daily or nearly-daily drinkers of alcohol.

The Justice Department officially proposed reclassifying marijuana as a less dangerous drug. News4’s Jackie Bensen explains how it would ease restrictions on cannabis on the federal level if approved.

A proposed rule sent to the federal register recognizes the medical uses of cannabis and acknowledges it has less potential for abuse than some of the nation’s most dangerous drugs.

More raids on illegal cannabis shops could be coming to the five boroughs. Two dozen were shut down today. New York’s Andrew Siff reports. 

The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration has proposed to shift marijuana from a “Schedule I” drug, which includes heroin and LSD, to a less tightly regulated “Schedule III” drug

Sources told NBC News that the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration plans to reclassify marijuana from a Schedule I to a Schedule III drug.

The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration will move to reclassify marijuana as a less dangerous drug, a historic shift to generations of American drug policy that could have wide ripple effects across the country.

Marijuana is fully legal in 24 states and Washington, D.C. Another 17 states have legalized its use solely for medical purposes, with varying caveats in each states’ laws.

In New Jersey, they are cashing in on cannabis. Atlantic City is embracing the marijuana business as another dispensary opens its doors–the third in an area that’s visited by tens of millions every year. There’s a number of other dispensaries on the horizon now. NBC New York’s Ted Greenberg reports.

Since New York legalized marijuana in 2021, unlicensed pot shops have proliferated across NYC, with limited pushback from authorities. On Tuesday, Gov. Hochul called on sites such as Yelp and Google Maps to stop listing them, and also renewed calls for the state Legislature to beef up enforcement powers and penalties.

Connecticut marijuana retailers say a dearth of licensed growers in the state’s fledgling legal pot industry has left them with a shortage of product to sell. The supply problem has appeared after slow retail growth in New York last year left growers there struggling with the opposite: an excess of supply. It would seem both problems could easily be solved...

A federal judge has rejected a challenge to New York state’s licensing program for selling legal marijuana, a system two California applicants say unconstitutionally discriminates against out-of-state residents. The ruling may spur New York into issuing hundreds of licenses in a state where most marijuana is sold by unlicensed businesses

Dazed Cannabis, a Black and veteran owned legal dispensary opened in the heart of Union Square, inside the historical Decker Building.

Dazed Cannabis is the fifth legal dispensary to open in the five boroughs and was opened by a Harlem native who was arrested in a 2008 sting operation for trying to by weed.