After a year of uncertainty regarding the effects of COVID-19 on youth substance use, the data are starting to come in and the picture is less dire than anticipated. Undoubtedly, young people with significant individual and family risk factorsdsuch as high levels of emotional distress, anxiety, or financial straind struggled this year both in terms of their mental health and substance use [1,2]. Still, use of the two most commonly used addictive substances by young people, e-cigarettes and alcohol, appears to have declined [3,4] among adolescents and college students during the course of stay-at-home orders in the U.S., even as the use of tobacco, alcohol, opioids, and other drugs increased among adults [5].Although multiple factors likely contributed to the apparent decline in youth substance use during the pandemic, including heightened parental supervision, less peer contact [6], and fewer social engagements in which young people typically use substances [4], one notable finding from recent research is that reduced physical access to substances was significantly associated with lower rates of use [7]. This finding, unique to the circumstances surrounding the pandemic, in which retail outlets and social venues were closed or operating under considerable restrictions, is important to consider as growing numbers of states move toward marijuana legalization. States considering or implementing recreational marijuana laws acknowledge the potential adverse effects of legalization on youth; however, concerns about protecting youth from being exposed to and accessing the drug in states where it becomes legal and inevitably commercialized tend to be eclipsed by arguments in favor of commercialization.At this juncture in the country's movement toward legalization, it behooves us to reflect upon lessons we learned from tobacco control efforts regarding what helps to protect youth from legal substances that are harmful to their health. Of all the prevention efforts employed, including those by parents, schools, Conflicts of interest: No funding or support and no potential conflicts to report.