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NY passes Jenifer Rajkumar's measures against illegal smoke shops
The legislation aims to tackle the proliferation of illegal operators that have emerged across the state
Indian American Assembly woman Jenifer Rajkumar / Image - X @JeniferRajkumar
Indian American Assemblywoman Jenifer Rajkumar's Stop Marijuana Over-proliferation and Keep Empty Operators of Unlicensed Transactions (SMOKEOUT) Act was successfully passed in the state of New York’s budget on Apr.18.
The legislation aims to shut down illegal cannabis shops operating in New York City and allows seizure of the instrumentality of the unlawful sales including real estate.
“From Day 1 of Session, I pledged to fight to close down all 36,000 illegal smoke shops. Now we will be able to “smoke ‘em out” and get the job done!” Rajkumar said in a post on X.
JUST NOW: I celebrated the passage of my #SMOKEOUTAct in the state budget on the floor of the Assembly. From Day 1 of Session, I pledged to fight to close down all 36,000 illegal smoke shops. Now we will be able to “smoke ‘em out” and get the job done! pic.twitter.com/dYphSEE16O
— Assemblywoman Jenifer Rajkumar (@JeniferRajkumar) April 18, 2024
The assemblywoman welcomed NY Governor Kathy Hochul’s new initiatives to shut down illicit cannabis operations, which included providing the Office of Cannabis Management and local municipalities with new authority to take action against illicit storefronts and those who enable them.
Before the SMOKE OUT act, state regulators, led by the Cannabis Control Board (CCB), held enforcement authority to shut down unlicensed businesses.
“Governor Hochul put her full support behind the provisions of my SMOKEOUT Act and committed to carrying out the closure of illegal smoke shops. After our discussions with her and her team this budget season, we came to an agreement on the importance of giving cities and municipalities across our State the power to shut down these shops on their own,” Rajkumar said in a statement.
“She (Rajkumar) has been a leader in getting tough legislations passed. By going after illegal smoke shops, we will protect our children and neighborhoods from the dangers of shootings and unregulated cannabis,” NYC Mayor Eric Adams said in a statement.
Statement from @NYCMayor on my #SMOKEOUTAct Victory! pic.twitter.com/injf9tOCUn
— Assemblywoman Jenifer Rajkumar (@JeniferRajkumar) April 19, 2024
The bill arrives as New York regulators work through the processing of hundreds of marijuana business license applications. In December alone, over a dozen new cannabis retailers began operations following a settlement agreement that lifted an injunction, thus ending a months-long licensing blockade.
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