New York State officially launched a grant-giving program, which will provide up to $30,000 per retail marijuana business to cover the startup costs.
Grants are designed to reimburse businesses that have been licensed by the state’s Conditional-Adult-Use Retail (CAURD). To qualify for that program, an applicant has to have been “justice involved”—in other words, impacted by a marijuana-related conviction—and have some experience running a profitable business.
On Tuesday, applications for the CAURD Grant Program were opened. Office of Cannabis Management says that funds will only be given out on a first come, first served basis.
The program covers expenses such as commercial rent, improvements to the business that meet state regulations, like inventory tracking systems, hardware, installation of security, and insurance.
Felicia A.B. said, “The CAURD grant program is an important step to support New York’s cannabis legal entrepreneurs in their efforts to establish and grow their businesses.” Reid, OCM’s interim executive director, released a press release about the grant program. By providing funding for startup costs we reinforce our commitment to a thriving and equitable cannabis market.
To qualify for the grant, applicants must show that they have incurred at least $10 000 in expenses. This can be from when they first received OCM’s final notice of license.
The office stated that applicants must also have “a business account with the same name as their CAURD licence, be registered to do business in New York State and comply fully with all local and state cannabis laws.”
In a press release, the office stated that “Empire State Development entered into a contractual agreement with FORWARD to administer the CAURD Grant Program. This will provide funding for eligible CAURD Licensees to help them support their businesses.”
After a slow rollout in marked by lawsuits and other delays, legal marijuana sales in New York have picked up significantly in the past several months. Regulations claim that this has been the result of both more licensed business openings and what is described as an effective crackdown on illegal shops.
In the meantime, earlier this year, an association of CAURD-licensed businesses called for Gov. Kathy Hochul, a Democrat, has offered to forgive high-cost loan amounts of tens or even hundreds of millions in a fund created by the governor.
Business owners claimed the program had “perpetuated a number of economic inequalities it was meant to address.”
Crystal Peoples Stokes, Democratic majority leader in the State Assembly, and author of California’s Cannabis Law, stated that financial assistance was needed for CAURD licence holders who are suffering from high-cost loan payments.
Other critics—including the NAACP New York State Conference, Black Cannabis Industry Association, Minority Cannabis Business Association, Service Disabled Veterans in Cannabis Association, Drug Policy Alliance, NYC NORML and VOCAL-NY—wrote to Hochul earlier that month to express dismay at what they described as marijuana regulators’ “efforts in service of big corporations at the expense of small business and equity outcomes.”
Advocates said that, since Chris Alexander’s departure as the first state chief cannabis regulator in May last year, the state had shifted “toward corporate interests, at the cost of small businesses, entrepreneurs who have been involved with the justice system, and CAURD licensees, which are affected by previous marijuana arrests.”
They wrote that they believed many of the knee-jerk decisions in reviewing licensing and the failure to commit to equity stemmed from a “lack of exposure and experience in developing cannabis markets and regulatory licensing systems, as well a as a weak demonstration of a willingness to lead the Agency according to the goals established” by New York’s law on adult use cannabis, the Marihuana Regulation and Tax Act(MRTA), signed into law 2021.
In the last few months, federal regulators have also created a new tool to help connect marijuana-related businesses that hold a license with banks who are ready to provide financial services to them.
OCM’s Cannabis Banking Directory listed the first 10 financial institutions who said they were servicing marijuana businesses. They are now open to accepting new clients, as New York expands its market.
OCM stated that “this initiative is a part of our strategic efforts to improve the financial stability and reduce regulatory barriers for cannabis businesses.” Financial services that are accessible and compliant have long been an issue for cannabis businesses, complicating operations and transparency.
In 2023 the Governor signed a law that will make it easier for financial institution to work with clients who are licensed by state authorities.
This law allows OCM to share information with financial institutions about licensees and applicants for marijuana businesses. It is intended to make it easier to comply with reporting obligations. The law requires that licensees or applicants consent before sharing information.
A recent budget proposal from Hochul aims to empower police who claim to smell marijuana to force a driver to take a drug test—a plan that’s drawing pushback not just from reform advocates but also from the state’s Assembly majority leader and the governor-appointed head of OCM.
The New York state Senate passed a law earlier this year to protect registered medical cannabis patients from eviction based only on the use of marijuana.
This session, senators introduced a law for the session of 2025 that would decriminalize possession of marijuana.
Several psychedelics bills have also been filed in New York—including one calling for the legalization of certain entheogenic substances such as psilocybin and ibogaine for adults 21 and older.
New York officials also recently announced that the state’s legal marijuana market has surpassed the $1 billion sales mark. The Governor called this milestone a “tribute to all those that have worked so hard to build the best cannabis industry in America: an industry which prioritizes equity and public safety while empowering communities”.
The figure reflects total sales since the cannabis market’s launch more than two years ago, in late 2022.
In November, Hochul signed two new cannabis-related bills into law—one to revive the Cannabis Growers Showcase program, where producers sell products directly to consumers at farmers market-style events, and another clarifying that cannabis is categorized as an agricultural crop in the state.
The governor argued in June, meanwhile, that there’s a direct correlation between stepped-up enforcement and “dramatically” increased legal sales. An official report from last year revealed both “growing-pains” and successful efforts in New York’s launch of the marijuana market.
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