Good morning. Legalized cannabis sales continue to rise in Connecticut. The state raked in $11.5 million in recreational marijuana sales in May, which is the highest monthly profit since the first dispensaries opened in January.
This is over $1 million more than April sales, according to the latest data collected by the state Department of Consumer Protection. More than 40,000 adult-use retail cannabis products were sold last month. However, medical marijuana sales slightly dipped to nearly $11.3 million with a few thousand fewer products sold.
Here’s a bite-sized look at what else we are hearing:
Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman wants to save nearly $270 million of remaining COVID-19 relief funds. Nassau was originally sent $385 million in federal funds, but Blakeman wants to transfer the remaining funds to the county’s general fund before the federal government issues a return of the funds. This action was approved by the county Rules and Finance committees on Monday. The funds would be used to promote economic development, stabilize taxes and maintain fiscal integrity.
U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) is leading an investigation into the relationship between the PGA and Saudi Arabia. This is in response to the PGA and the Saudi-backed investment firm PIF announcing their merger to unify golf globally in the form of a collectively owned, for-profit entity. The Senate will conduct the investigation over concerns that Saudi Arabia may be influencing American institutions in an effort to “sportswash” their human and civil rights violations.
Equinor is facing obstacles to construct two offshore wind projects off of the coast of Long Beach. The start dates to construct the two wind projects, named Empire 1 and 2, were pushed back as far as 2028. Some residents along Long Island’s South Shore are protesting the Norwegian-based energy company’s projects for how they may negatively impact marine mammals and coastline communities. The projects are poised to bring wind energy to New York City through underground transmission cables.
Angelica’s Law passed in New York to amend vehicle and traffic laws. The law is named after Angelica Nappi, a Long Island resident who was killed in 2008 in a collision with a driver who had seven prior driver’s license suspensions and was released from prison four months before. The law will lower the number of suspensions required to trigger felony charges. It awaits signage from Governor Kathy Hochul.
Shore Line East will see reduced funding down to 44% of pre-pandemic levels for the next fiscal year. The rail service is currently operating with funds at 66% of pre-pandemic levels. The funding reduction aligns with fewer riders since COVID-19. In 2019, average annual ridership was close to 661,000 but that decreased to 190,000 in 2022.
Actor Treat Williams, a Connecticut native, died in a collision in Vermont on Monday. According to Vermont state police, a vehicle drove into Williams, which threw him from his motorcycle. Williams was perhaps best known for his roles in the 1979 film adaptation of the musical Hair and the 2010 survival drama 127 Hours. Williams was 71.
Catalytic converter thefts are on the rise in Connecticut and New York. Since 2020, there have been 2,126 thefts in Connecticut and 2,433 thefts in New York, according to a report by the National Insurance Crime Bureau. Most of the thefts occurred in 2022. The converters are targeted for their platinum, rhodium and palladium metals, which are more valuable than gold.
PROUD Academy will no longer begin operations in New Haven this fall. Instead, the LGBTQ+ student supportive school will move its location to Ansonia — the founder of the school Patty Nicolari’s hometown. The purpose of the change is to save renovation and tuition costs. Several facilities in the New Haven location required upgrades that would have increased student tuition costs to $40,000 annually. Instead, the already renovated Ansonia location will only cost students $19,900 in tuition.
Get yourself a Montauk Point Lighthouse license plate! The New York State Department of Motor Vehicles unveiled the new plate for Long Island motorists at the Bethpage DMV district office on Tuesday. This is a part of a plan to introduce special plates for the state’s 10 regions. The plate features the historic lighthouse with a sunset backdrop along the eastern tip of the Suffolk County coastline. The plates cost about $60.
