At their board meeting on Nov. 21, 2022 (Meeting), the Cannabis Control Board (Board) approved, among other things, proposed adult-use cannabis regulations (Regulations) that will ultimately govern the application and licensure process for the majority of New York’s cannabis-related businesses.

The approximately 300 pages of Regulations specify what applicants need to submit if they want to join New York’s cannabis market as a cultivator, processor, retail dispensary, distributor, microbusiness, etc. The Regulations list the application fees required for each license type, and the Board noted during the Meeting that all social and economic equity applicants will each receive a 50% reduction in their application fee.

Importantly, the Regulations state that applications will be accepted on a continuous rolling basis, giving the impression that forthcoming application periods will not be limited to a month-long window, like we saw with conditional license applicants. However, since the Meeting, there has been no indication as to when the Office of Cannabis Management would begin accepting applications. We will publish an update when the application window opens.

In addition to approving the proposed Regulations, the Board also accomplished the following at the Meeting:

1. Approved 16 conditional cultivator and eight conditional processor applications for licensure;
2. Approved the issuance of three cannabis laboratory permits;
3. Granted 36 provisional conditional adult-use retail dispensary (CAURD) licenses, subject to completion of supplementary applications and municipal notification;
4. Approved revised packaging, marketing, labeling and advertising regulations for public comment, which provide additional flexibility for licensees to build their brands while still maintaining public health standards;
5. Approved revised cannabis laboratory regulations for public comment and extended the expiration date of current emergency regulations to March 14, 2023; and
6. Approved emergency regulations related to violations and enforcement of the New York cannabis laws.

Bond’s cannabis attorneys continue to closely monitor developments to the rules and regulations surrounding New York’s cannabis industry. For questions about the information provided above or about the cannabis industry in general, please contact Dustin M. Dorsino, Jeffrey B. Scheer or the Bond attorney with whom you are regularly in contact.