Social Equity Investment Fund Financed
July 5th, 2023
Brief Summary: New York’s Cannabis Social Equity Investment Fund, aimed at supporting Conditional Adult-Use Retail Dispensary (CAURD) operators, has been fully financed at $200M. The fund completion was achieved after Chicago Atlantic, an asset management firm, invested $150 million, adding to the $50 million previously committed by the state’s 2023 budget. The fund, announced by Governor Kathy Hochul in 2022, is overseen by the Dormitory Authority of the State of New York and managed by Social Equity Impact Ventures, a partnership led by Chris Webber and Lavetta Willis.
Link: Social Equity Investment Fund Financed – July 5th, 2023
No Movement on Farm Market Plan
July 3rd, 2023
Brief Summary: The Office of Cannabis Management (OCM) unveiled a strategy in late May permitting provisional growers and vendors to distribute and sell cannabis at summer farmers’ markets. However, according to multiple insiders within the state administration and NY Cannabis Insider editor Brad Racino, this plan “appears to be dead in the water.”
Link: No Movement on Farm Market Plan – July 3rd, 2023
Hemp Seedlings Planted at SUNY Adirondack
June 20th, 2023
Brief Summary: Thanks to a generous donation by Scott Fish of Adirondack Hemp Farms, SUNY Adirondack received 400 Hemp Seedlings which were delivered to the school and successfully planted by faculty and students under the school’s recently obtained hemp cultivator license.
Link: Hemp Seedlings Planted at SUNY Adirondack – June 20th, 2023
Adding Cole to the fire
June 16th, 2023
Brief Summary: I wrote a column for the NY Cannabis Insider highlighting the potential threat posed by New York’s illegal cannabis market to the truce established by the Cole Memo during Obama’s administration. The memo functioned as an informal agreement between the federal government and the states, limiting the persecution and prosecution of individuals involved in the state-sanctioned cannabis industry.
Link: Adding Cole to the fire – June 16th, 2023
Raids Pick Up Speed
June 15th 2023
Brief Summary: Governor Hochul widens NY’s campaign against illegal shops by ordering more “inspections” under powers granted by legislation signed into the FY 2024 Budget which allow the Office of Cannabis Management (OCM) and the Department of Taxation and Finance (DTF) to conduct inspections, assess fines up to $20,000 a day, and initiate closure of businesses selling cannabis without a license. Critics argue that NY is restarting the war on drugs while others point out that raids on a handful of shops will do little to put a dent in the estimated over 30,000+ illicit cannabis businesses (including delivery businesses).
Link: Raids Pick Up Speed – June 15th 2023
Reuben McDaniel Resigns from Cannabis Control Board
June 15th 2023
Brief Summary: Cannabis Control Board (CCB) member Reuben McDaniel, who also serves as CEO of the Dormitory Authority of the State of New York (DASNY), resigned from the CCB following conflict of interest allegations and criticisms from CAURD licensees and NY’s cannabis associations over DASNY’s lack of transparency.
Link: Reuben McDaniel Resigns from Cannabis Control Board – June 15th 2023
Right to Distribute Extended
June 1st, 2023
Brief Summary: Gov. Kathy Hochul signed a bill into law avoiding a potential supply chain disruption for legal cannabis in New York. The legislation extends the permission for Adult-Use Conditional Cultivation and Adult-Use Conditional Processing licensees to distribute to dispensaries until June 1, 2024, after which it is expected that licensed distributors will take over.
Link: Right to Distribute Extended – June 1st, 2023
Variscite Lawsuit Settled
May 30th, 2023
Brief Summary: The Cannabis Control Board approved a settlement agreement in the lawsuit brought by Variscite NY One, Inc. against regulators. This settlement allows the Office of Cannabis Management to issue CAURD licenses in the Finger Lakes region, which was previously under injunction preventing licenses from being awarded to qualified operators.