POT ON PAUSE
There were no dispensary licenses granted in region because of lawsuit
KINGSTON, N.Y. >> In what board members called “a historic moment,” the state Cannabis Control Board on Monday approved 37 applications for retail cannabis dispensaries across much of New York, a major step in the rollout of state’s legalized adultuse recreational marijuana market.
None of those licenses, however, were granted to applicants from the Mid-Hudson Valley, because a federal judge blocked the issuance of licenses in five regions of the state, including the Hudson Valley, pending the outcome of a lawsuit filed by a Michigan-based company challenging the program’s selection requirements.
According to the state Office of Cannabis Control, the agency received 903 applicants for 150 licenses to be issued under the conditional adult-use retail dispensary licensing program.
On Nov. 11, federal District Court Judge Gary L. Sharpe issued a temporary injunction prohibiting the issuance of conditional licenses to operate dispensaries in the Mid-Hudson Valley, Brooklyn, Central New
York, the Finger Lakes, and Western New York while the case is pending. His decision affects 63 of the 150 licenses that the state plans to issue by the end of 2022.
According to a Nov. 22 court filing by the state Office of Cannabis Control, the state received 75 applications for 17 licenses to be awarded in the Mid-Hudson Valley, including Ulster County.
The lawsuit was filed by the Michigan-based Variscite NY One, which argued that the requirement that applicants have both significant ties to the state, as well as a marijuana conviction under New York state law, is a violation of the constitutional interstate commerce protections.
When New York legalized the use of recreational marijuana in March 2021, they built into the law provisions to ensure that people convicted of cannabis-related crimes received preferential treatment when it came to approving licenses.
Of the 37 licenses issued Monday, 29 were awarded to “justice-involved” applicants, meaning that the applicant or a close family member had been convicted of a marijuanarelated offense. The remaining eight were granted to not-forprofit organizations with a history of helping recently incarcerated individuals successfully re-enter society.
Jen Metzger, a member of the Cannabis Control Board and Ulster County executive-elect, called the issuance of the licenses “a momentous day” during the board’s meeting.
“This is really the first (program) of its kind anywhere,” she said. “We’re truly leading with equity here, so it’s very exciting.”
The Cannabis Control Board expects to issue additional conditional retail licenses in the coming weeks.