New York Becomes 17th State to Legalize Adult-Use Cannabis

On Tuesday, March 30, 2021, New York’s legislature passed the “Marijuana Regulation and Taxation Act” (“Act”) and sent it to Governor Andrew Cuomo to sign it into law.

Currently, New York’s 19,336,776 population is serviced by the 2016-established Medical Marijuana Program comprised of 143,000 card holders services and 10 vertically-integrated grower-processor-dispensary licensees.

The Act establishes:

           - the Office of Cannabis Management to launch/oversee a comprehensive regulatory framework encompassing adult-use, medical and cannabinoid hemp governed by a 5 member board (3 of whom are appointed by the governor and 1 appointed by Senate and Assembly, respectively);

           - increased per-patient-caregivers, medical cannabis home cultivation and an expanded “qualifying medical conditions” list to be eligible to purchaser Medical Marijuana;

           - a 2-Tier licensing structure separating grower/processor from dispensary licensees;

           - a social and economic equity plan assisting those impacted by Cannabis enforcement awarding 50% of licenses to minority or women-owned business enterprise, service-disabled veterans or distressed farmers;

           - a new cannabis tax structure shifting the wholesale excise tax to the retail level and imposing a 9% state excise tax and 4%-of-the-retail-price local excise tax (split 25%/75% between the respective counties and municipalities);  

           - the sale of hemp flower and smokable hemp forms after adult-use licensed dispensaries are launched);

           - that those 21 and older may possess up to 3 ounces of Cannabis and 24 grams of Cannabis concentrate outside of their home and grow 3 mature and 3 immature plants for personal use (with up to 6 mature and 6 immature plants per household);

           - a Cannabis Revenue Fund into which tax revenue will be deposited allocating:

                       - 40% to education;

                       - 40% to community grants reinvestment fund; and

                       - 20% to drug treatment and public education fund.

Although the existing Medical Marijuana licensees should be able to immediately to sell Adult-Use Cannabis, it will take up to two years for the New York’s Adult Use Program to launch and open sales to the public.

Copyright ?2021 by Steven M. Schain, Esquire