Issue 1

Launching New York’s premier cannabis industry publication

Farmworkers trim hemp plants after harvest at Main Street Farms in Cortland, N.Y., Tuesday, September 21, 2021. N. Scott Trimble | strimble@syracuse.com 

Welcome to New York Cannabis Insider: The first publication dedicated to covering all angles and voices of the state’s emerging cannabis marketplace AND hosting its biggest and best industry networking events.

It is a privilege to launch a product that will illuminate a new billion-dollar ecosystem in my home state while maintaining a watchful eye on the social equity provisions and intentions of the Marijuana Regulation and Taxation Act.

Here’s what to expect from us:

  • Precise and fact-checked journalism covering the regulators, businesses and people emerging within the state’s cannabis industry.
  • Best practices, as written by marketplace entrepreneurs and veterans.
  • Stories that amplify underrepresented voices, shine a light on inequities and make government actions more transparent .
  • Thoughtful and illuminating Q&As with cannabis leaders across the private and public sectors.
  • Useful aggregations across news, science and technology.
  • Exclusive networking, events and access: Text our journalists, get educated at conferences and connect with others in the cannabis community to develop key relationships.

NY Cannabis Insider is bolstered by a team of reporters, editors, event coordinators and marketers from Advance Local, which runs nine local media groups and several other brands across the US. We’re also supported by our neighbors at NJ Cannabis Insider, who recently celebrated their 200th issue!

So yeah, we’re putting some muscle behind this.

Inside our inaugural issue, you’ll find:

Insight into how legacy operators are feeling about forthcoming state regs; Retail best practices from Steven Phan of NYC’s Come Back Daily; Assemblywoman Crystal Peoples-Stokes talks federal legalization and her new Political Action Committee; The Cayuga Nation branches out into cultivation; How the war in Ukraine is affecting cannabis lobbying; An update on what’s happening with our neighbors in Massachusetts and Connecticut; and more.

This first issue is free. Future issues will be available to subscribers on a monthly or yearly basis. (Note: After following that link, you must create an account first before subscribing).

As we grow, expect from us the highest-quality reporting, networking and guidance, and help NYCI evolve by sending thoughts, criticism, or tips to cannabis@NYup.com. Or you can reach me anytime at 315-282-8576 or at bracino@nyup.com.

Brad Racino, Editor & Publisher, NY Cannabis Insider | @bradracino

Fear & Suspicion: NY’s Legacy Cannabis Operators Eye a Legal Marketplace

by Sean Teehan, NY Cannabis Insider | @SeanPTeehan

Reggie Keith (center) runs Buffalo-based Canna-House.

Reggie Keith established Buffalo-based Canna-House in 2017 as a private social club centered around marijuana, which wasn’t legal in New York at the time.

As a member of that legacy market, he sees the benefits of seeking a license within the state’s forthcoming legal cannabis industry: No more looking over his shoulder for law enforcement, a chance to establish a legitimate family business, and an opportunity to create generational wealth.

“There’s so much potential once you go from being a stigmatized salesman to actually being able to run a legal business,” Keith said.

But, he added, there are drawbacks.

Paying taxes and submitting to state rules and regulations is new territory for a lot of old-timers, he pointed out, as is risking a license application, which could be denied but still place an unregulated business on the state’s radar.

“You really are asking people to risk their livelihood and trust a system that has notoriously fucked them over,” said Keith, who is planning to apply for a state license. “There has to be way more give [on the state’s part] for us to have that trust factored in.”

Unlike other states that sought to shut legacy operators out of their legal markets, New York expressed a desire to bring them into the fold. Chris Alexander, the executive director of the Office of Cannabis Management, said their inclusion is key to his office’s approach.

“Part of what we understand here is that in order for our adult use market to be successful, we need to make sure we’re trying to include the legacy market as much as possible,” Alexander told NY Cannabis Insider.

However, legacy operators interviewed say the state hasn’t been clear on what protections it will afford them if they come out of the shadows, and the OCM and others haven’t engaged with them as regulations are written for the legal cannabis market.

The dynamic is leading to trepidation among some legacy operators as they weigh the benefits of running a legitimate, fully-licensed business against the risk of losing it all.

“There’s no safety net,” Keith said.

A fundamental shift

Located on the W. Averell Harriman State Office Building Campus in Albany, the Office of Cannabis Management is New York’s primary marijuana industry regulator.

On Sept. 1, Gov. Kathy Hochul announced the state hired Alexander, 31, to lead the new office, which is responsible for creating a legal adult-use cannabis industry in New York from the ground-up.

Alexander previously worked for the New York State Democratic Party, as a congressional legislative aide and a policy coordinator for the Drug Policy Alliance, and as counsel to the New York State Senate, according to Hochul’s office.

He told NY Cannabis Insider in December that his life’s work has centered around legalizing cannabis in New York, and he was a key player in crafting the Marijuana Regulation and Taxation Act, which former Gov. Andrew Cuomo signed into law in March.

Christopher Alexander is the executive director of New York's Office of Cannabis Management.

In addition to overseeing a hiring spree and the writing of draft regulations, Alexander’s office has already sent dozens of cease and desist letters to “grey market” cannabis businesses that operate under a perceived loophole in the law that they say allows them to “gift” cannabis instead of “sell” it.

Alexander told NYCI that cannabis regulators have been meeting with legacy market individuals and groups to better understand how to include them in the emerging ecosystem, but he declined to specify with whom OCM has met.

“There’s definitely been some engagement with those folks” which is ongoing, Alexander said, “but it’s also relationships that have been developed over years.”

Legacy’s concerns have already informed the regulations, Alexander said. For example, since legacy operators likely can’t show tax returns, OCM officials are cognizant about formulating policy that doesn’t prioritize tax records as a licensing requirement.

And though he understands concerns about legal or financial consequences of applying for licensure, Alexander said the paradigm shift that New York has undergone with marijuana legalization has drastically reduced such liability.

“There’s a fundamental shift in public policy right now,” he said. “Missing out on this opportunity, I think, is a big mistake.”

On Feb. 14, Alexander said he expects some draft regulations will be released toward the beginning of spring, and all of them by May.

A California history lesson

Steve DeAngelo is a longtime cannabis entrepreneur and activist who sold marijuana in the Northeast, including in New York, between 1975 and 2000. He’s also a co-founder of Harborside, which describes itself as one of California’s oldest legal cannabis retailers.

It’s encouraging to him that New York officials say they want legacy operators involved in the state’s legal industry — California took a hostile approach to the legacy market during his time at Harborside, he said.

As a lifelong activist, author, educator and entrepreneur, Steve DeAngelo has spent more than four decades on the front lines of the cannabis freedom movement.

He recalled when his staff turned away then-top California cannabis regulator Lori Ajax during a tour in 2016 because she was carrying a gun (part of her role as a law enforcement officer).

DeAngelo sees this as indicative of a wrongheaded approach.

“They were using terms like, ‘it’s our job to root out the black market, or to eliminate the underground market,’” DeAngelo said.

Today, California’s legal cannabis market is significantly underperforming due in part to the unregulated market, according to cannabis industry publication MJBizDaily. That’s largely a function of over-taxation and over-regulation of the industry starting in 2018, when the state enacted adult-use cannabis rules that were much stricter than the permissive medical marijuana codes previously in place.

When the new regulations went into effect, DeAngelo said, Harborside went from legally conducting business with some 500 cannabis farmers in the state to 10, and those were all large, well financed corporations able to meet the state’s demanding licensing requirements.

He said one problem for legacy operators looking to make the switch to legal was a requirement that license applicants show that they own or lease property where they can run their companies.

Some two-thirds of California municipalities prohibit cannabis businesses within their borders. DeAngelo said that caused purchase prices and rents for spaces where marijuana businesses can operate to skyrocket — making many underground operators unable to meet this requirement.

Another major problem in California has been high taxes that led customers to return to the unregulated market, according to a MJBizDaily study.

“It’s kind of this perfect storm where demand was reduced in the legal marketplace by the high taxation, and then a very, very robust legacy market was preserved by the failure of the state to license legacy operators,” said DeAngelo.

The 63-year-old is currently advocating for measures like provisional licensing for all marijuana licensing categories for legacy operators in New York.

Talking to each other

Starting a dialogue between state officials and New York’s legacy market could be challenging for a couple reasons, said Jeremiah Swain, who has been growing and selling cannabis in the Ithaca/Syracuse region for about two years.

One, underground operators mostly try to conduct business in secrecy, and two, few trust a legal system that has destroyed lives with prison sentences, he said.

“It’s asking a tall task to put faith in a system that wasn’t built to work for you, and continuously shows you that it doesn’t work for you”
Jeremiah Swain

While state officials have said they want legacy operators included in the legal market, Swain doesn’t think they’ve done enough yet to build credibility and trust, though he acknowledges the office’s difficult task in creating a new marketplace.

Swain told NYCI that speaking publicly about growing and selling marijana illegally may put him at risk, as does applying for a license, which he intends to do. And he’s not convinced it’s the right move for everybody, especially those who lack the resources to apply for a license, which can be an expensive process.

“You’ve either got to decide to stay underground or go all the way above,” Swain said, and hope that “you get a license.”

“Because if you do all this above ground and then don’t get a license, then what?” he said. “You could end up trying to do the right thing, and end up shit out of luck with nothing.”

Jeremiah Swain has been growing and selling cannabis in the Ithaca/Syracuse region for about two years. Photo courtesy Jesse Winter

Swain thinks the OCM and other state agencies should be more transparent about actions they will take to protect legacy operators who are trying to join the legal market.

Officials should also invest in a public marketing campaign to destigmatize cannabis – one especially aimed toward minority communities – and admit wrongdoing in criminalizing marijuana, he added.

“The government has a responsibility to invest in the remarketing and rebranding of cannabis to Black and Brown people so that way they do feel like it’s something they could be a part of without consequences.”

Keith of Canna-House also said he thinks OCM is at least trying to figure out ways to bring the legacy market into the fold, but said officials aren’t doing enough to engage with operators, like holding in-person public forums to hear their concerns and advice.

He thinks the OCM should form a council that includes legacy players, regulators, and registered medical operators in the state. Such a panel could discuss proposed regulations, and how they would affect each party.

MRTA does dictate that the OCM creates an advisory council that includes representatives from the farming industry, cannabis industry, and organizations serving communities impacted by past federal and state drug policies, as well as people with prior drug convictions and the formerly incarcerated.

However, Keith thinks the OCM should consult with such a panel before writing regulations.

“In theory it sounds like a foreign concept, but you’re looking to combine these two worlds — and that you don’t have people talking from these two worlds just makes no sense,” Keith said.

“People like myself could feel empowered to go out into the community and recruit some of these folks that I know; but I’m not about to walk my people into a trap.”

A ticking time bomb

Moving from the unregulated cannabis market to being a license-holder can certainly be a fraught process, said J.T. Woehler, a former legacy operator turned licensed cannabis business owner out of Humboldt County, Calif. He remembers his initial encounters with regulators when he was applying for a state cannabis business license.

“It took us eight months, because we couldn’t get the application process right,” Woehler said.

He was a partner for about two years at an underground grow operation in Humboldt County when, in 2017, the state sent a letter warning that law enforcement would raid their cultivation site if they didn’t cease operations.

JT Woehler is a former legacy operator turned licensed cannabis business owner.

Woehler left, and after working as an underground distributor in Southern California for about a year he established a legal business, Trimco Services, which distributed marijuana and offered trimming services to cultivators.

“It really gave me the experience of how to understand compliance … how to pull permits, how to communicate with the fire department,” Woehler said. “That whole learning curve took quite a while.”

Woehler is now a co-founder and chief operating officer of New York-based The Mary Group, which advises legacy businesses on how to operate legally. He said legacy operators worried about opening themselves to trouble by applying for a license are right to be concerned.

However, remaining in the unregulated market won’t be viable for most people in the long run, he added, because of both law enforcement and market dynamics.

“When you’re operating as a legacy operator, it’s a ticking time bomb, at the end of the day,” Woehler said. It can’t last forever.

“There’s not a lot of bootleg alcohol operators out there.”

Sean Teehan is an NY Cannabis Insider reporter. He can be reached at 508-498-6884 or by email at steehan@nyup.com.

The importance of cannabis retail within communities

by Steven Phan, Founder, Come Back Daily and Chair, Retail Committee, NYCGPA

With New York State finally set to embrace cannabis legalization, eager entrepreneurs are preparing to take advantage of this opportunity to establish a legitimate business in the legal market. Many of them have their eyes set on opening a retail operation.

However, while the legal market may be well on its way in 2022, stigmas, misconceptions and general fears regarding legal cannabis still remain as an obstacle that may force many businesses to put extra thought into the role they must play in changing perspectives and integrating into the community as legal operations.

Retail dispensaries will not only be providers of quality, well-regulated products, but also advocates for cannabis, interacting directly with community members, providing them insights into the industry and giving a glimpse of what the presence of the legal market actually looks like in their neighborhoods.

The “Faces” of the Industry

Although we are seeing more states legalize cannabis, there is still a significant lack of education in many local communities, even those who have opted in to retail. Dispensaries have the opportunity to become not only retail hubs, but beacons of cannabis education and stigma deconstruction because for many residents the presence of these retail locations will be their first interaction with a legal cannabis business, or any type of cannabis entity in general.

While some communities may be home to cultivators, manufacturers and processors, the bulk of direct one-on-one consumer interaction will occur within these dispensaries with “bud tenders” — employees who interact with community members face-to-face, answering questions, recommending products and dispelling myths and misconceptions.

Steven Phan, co-founder of Come Back Daily CBD

With this in mind, entrepreneurs and legacy market members who are looking to establish a retail business must be prepared to connect with local residents, understand their potential concerns, personalize their business model and fit their location’s demographics, culture and needs. They must do all of this while taking advantage of the opportunity to not only be good neighbors and build that much-needed trust, but also be involved thought leaders and educators.

Integrating into — and creating — community culture

Another unique aspect of the cannabis market, particularly within New York communities, is the industry culture. This can differ depending on demographic, location and the socioeconomic factors, and retail owners should be mindful of this when shaping their business narrative.

For example, being aware of the area’s past experiences with the War on Drugs and prohibition, and the presence of the legacy and illicit market within the neighborhood, are of the utmost importance. Acknowledging these factors will be key in shaping how a legal retail operation will interact with and be accepted by a community.

These Practices Worked With Cannabinoids

When CBD and other cannabinoids became popular, they were also faced with misconceptions and scrutiny. At Come Back Daily, we designed our CBD shop to be intimate and informational, where customers are welcomed and encouraged to ask questions, interact with products and be open about their knowledge levels. Transparency and well-tailored product recommendations always come first.

Additionally, we are extremely active in our community, attending and speaking at community events, becoming familiar with local stakeholders and collaborating with other local businesses and groups for educational information sessions, roundtables and public forums. We also sell quality, locally-sourced products from diverse, woman and BIPOC-owned suppliers.

Furthermore, we make our business accessible and visible through delivery and pickup options (which allowed us to stay open and available during the pandemic), informational online blogs, free educational materials and commentary in the form of media interactions and thought leadership.

Legalization and the establishment of a legal market is only the beginning of what’s needed to allow New York’s recreational industry to reach its full potential. The first legal businesses to get off the ground — especially retail operations — will be at the forefront of further stamping out stigma, humanizing cannabis and integrating into hesitant communities. Embracing this role will be key in establishing a successful business and strengthening the industry.

Introducing Subtext

Subtext connects NYCI readers with reporters.

Subtext is a texting platform that connects NY Cannabis Insider readers with reporters, and allows instantaneous notification of breaking news — free from the clutter of social media. Annual subscribers have unlimited access to the platform, and can interact directly with our staff. Signup information in next week’s issue.

Tickets for our NY Cannabis Insider Live conference on March 31 are now available! From 9 a.m. – 1 p.m., a panel of experts and insiders will explain:

  • Tips for Financing your Cannabis Business
  • How to Source and Secure Financial Capital
  • Defining and Understanding the Opt-Out Dynamic
  • Native American Dispensaries and Their Role in the NYS Cannabis Industry.

NYCI statewide conferences feature the best and brightest thought leaders willing to share their expertise with others looking to start their cannabis ventures. Plus, networking sessions between panels are an opportunity to connect with other industry professionals.

See our past speakers and topics and purchase tickets to the March event here.

Build your cannabis brand, forge connections and grow your revenue with NY Cannabis Insider sponsorships. Opportunities are still available for our March 31 conference. Contact Senior Marketing Director Lindsay Marlenga for more information.

How we got here

by Sean Teehan, NY Cannabis Insider | @SeanPTeehan

View of the New York State Capitol looking across the Empire State Plaza, Saturday, March 13, 2021, in Albany, N.Y.

Nearly a year after New York State officially legalized adult-use cannabis, residents and businesspeople are still waiting for legal sales to start. Regulators say that likely won’t happen until 2023, so you’ve got time to read this brief history of key events on the state’s road to full marijuana legalization:

July 7, 2014: Gov. Andrew Cuomo signs a bill making New York the 23rd state to allow medical marijuana.

June 19, 2019: A bill that would have legalized recreational cannabis dies in the New York State legislature as support for the measure collapses.

July 29, 2019: New York State passes legislation to decriminalize cannabis, allowing New Yorkers to possess up to two ounces of marijuana without any criminal penalties.

March 31, 2021: Gov. Andrew Cuomo signs the Marijuana Regulation and Taxation Act, making New York the nation’s 17th state to legalize recreational cannabis.

August 10, 2021: Gov. Andrew Cuomo resigns, after failing to make key appointments to the Office of Cannabis Management. His resignation put the onus of establishing the state’s adult-use cannabis market on incoming Gov. Kathy Hochul.

October 5, 2021: New York’s Cannabis Control Board holds its first meeting.

Dec. 31, 2021: Nearly half of New York State’s municipalities opt out of adult-use cannabis retail. Beginning Jan. 1, 2022, cities and towns who have not already opted out may no longer do so.

January 5, 2022: In her first State of the State address, Gov. Kathy Hochul announces a $200 million fund to support social equity applicants seeking adult-use cannabis business licenses

Feb. 8, 2022: The Office of Cannabis Management sends dozens of cease and desist letters to businesses suspected of illegally selling cannabis under the guise of “gifting” the drug.

February 22, 2022: Gov. Kathy Hochul signs a law allowing provisional licensing for some hemp growers and processors to begin to grow and process adult-use cannabis. Hochul said the new temporary licenses could help fast-track the opening of the state’s adult-use cannabis market.

Crystal Peoples-Stokes talks provisional licensing, social equity and the tasks before the OCM

by Sean Teehan, NY Cannabis Insider | @SeanPTeehan

Assemblywoman Crystal Peoples-Stokes, a Democrat who represents Buffalo, speaks at a rally for marijuana legalization at the New York State Capitol in Albany on Tuesday, Jan. 28, 2020.

For State Assembly Majority Leader Crystal Peoples-Stokes, cannabis legalization in New York is a long time coming.

An author of the Marijuana Regulation and Taxation Act, Peoples-Stokes is a longtime advocate for marijuana reform, and recently established the Equity PAC, which partly focuses on electing politicians who support cannabis reform.

The Democrat from Buffalo sat for an interview with NY Cannabis Insider last week to discuss the formation of New York’s adult-use cannabis market, an expansion of provisional licensing for social equity businesses and the opportunities the newly legal market presents to historically disadvantaged communities.

NYCI: In setting up a legal adult-use cannabis industry in New York, what do you think is going well, and what do you think needs work so far?

Peoples-Stokes: I don’t see anything that needs work right now. I think what needed work was when we passed the legislation on March 31 of last year, there should have been an Office of Cannabis Management board in place by June, and it wasn’t. And so, I think the speed with which the new governor, since her installation, has put that board in place, and they have begun to react to the legislation — I’m good with that.

You sponsored the legislation that Gov. Hochul signed that allows for provisional licenses for some cultivators and processors. Can you tell me why you supported this, and why you think this legislation is important?

Well, if there is an intent from the Office of Cannabis Management to have retail dispensaries open by the end of the year, they’re going to need to have a product. And I think it makes sense that that product is grown in the state of New York, and because there are already existing New York farmers with licenses as hemp growers for, in some cases, more than two years – because it’s been legal to consume for the last four – it makes sense to start there. So I think that was the exact right thing to do.

I know for a fact that there are a lot of people who would love to be in the space that these hemp growers are going to have the opportunity to be in, but I also know for a fact that it makes sense – since we’ve created a brand new industry above ground in NY – to focus on New Yorkers first, as opposed to multi-state operators.

Can you tell me about the PAC that you recently established?

The PAC is established for the purpose of getting the broader community engaged in making sure that the intent of the legislation happens as it was drafted.

How has it been received so far?

So far, so good.

Who else in New York do you think is instrumental to progressive cannabis reform?

I think all electeds – any of them, particularly those at the local levels, I think they play a very big role here. I think the citizenry in general. I think particularly senior citizens who have been literally acculturated to the plant being criminalized, so there’s a huge education process that needs to happen. I think the medical community as well as the pharmaceutical community need to be much more aware of the capacities of the plant.

I don’t know if you have this issue in Syracuse, but in the Western New York area, there are people who have been ‘gifting’ marijuana for stickers … That’s not gifting, that’s selling marijuana, which is not legal yet, because there are no regulations in place.

And so, I think there’s a lot of space for a lot of us to figure out what our roles are in terms of making sure this legislation is implemented in the correct way. I’m not going to fault the people out there gifting in order to sell the product, because we’re the ones who made it legal, and if we had acted faster, I don’t think the market would have gotten as awry as it has. But that’s just going to be the task of the Cannabis Control Board. Now you not only have to set up regulations, rules and policies, but you’ve got to figure out how to rein in this market that’s gone awry, because we let it, essentially.

What do you think about the idea of expanding provisional licensing beyond cultivators and processors?

There will be provisional licenses for dispensaries for equity businesses. At some point before the end of March, I’m understanding that there will be regulations out for dispensaries. This will include the opportunity for equity businesses to get access to a dispensary before the end of the year.

In California right now there are concerns that the illegal market is out-competing the legal market. What do you think is being done in New York – MRTA and implementation of it – that could avoid a similar situation?

I think everything takes time, and there are people engaged in the illegal market now. They were last year, and they were 10 years ago. And so, they’re not going to stop until they can see that there’s a better product available to them, and they know what’s in it. I think most consumers are interested in the best product, not necessarily the quickest product. I think it will take time, and I believe that, if you look at Canada, they’re finally getting to the position where they’re actually finally making more money at the government-operated facilities than underground. So it is a process, and it’s not going to happen immediately.

Gov. Hochul announced the $200 social equity fund. Do you have any concerns about this fund?

I don’t have any concerns about it at all. I believe it will end up being way more than $200 million, because, as you know, there’s private investment included in this fund.

Are you for or against federal legalization before New York gets its adult-use cannabis market off the ground?

I’m for it.

Why?

Mostly because of banking issues, and 280E issues, and people’s ability to write off what they need to run their business just like any other business does. But the other reason is: it’s a plant. It should have never been made illegal. And people should have never been incarcerated behind it. We have a lot of work cleaning up the lives that have been scarred over generations. And we don’t need to see just one state government at a time, we need the federal government working on changing the direction of these people’s lives. There is a residual impact, and we, quite frankly, see it living out on our streets every day. Particularly inner-city communities with homicides, and mental health issues, and distressed children, and children who can’t do well in school, and grandmothers who are taking care of older children they can’t handle. All these things are the result of criminalizing not just the plant, but people over 90 years. And so, absolutely the federal government should legalize it. It never should have made it illegal.

Is there anything else people should know about New York’s coming adult-use market?

I think it’s just important for people – particularly Black and Brown people who really don’t believe that this is an opportunity for them to get access to creating a business above ground and growing generational wealth – that they just need to get themselves ready, because this is that opportunity. Much like if you were going to open a bakery, you would start to do planning, you would do all the planning around everything that you would need for that business. You need to do the same thing in the cannabis industry, should you have the desire to be in it. There are a number of organizations in most communities across the state that have organized themselves to help people to do that, and quite frankly, if people in and around Syracuse or any other part of the state can’t find somebody to help them — call me. I’ll try to figure out how to find somebody to help them. Every opportunity in this above-ground industry does not involve touching the plant.

Upstate New York’s Cayuga Nation expands its legal marijuana business

by Don Cazentre, Syracuse.com

The Cayuga homeland lies in the Finger Lakes region along Cayuga Lake.

The Cayuga Nation recently started selling recreational-use marijuana at its retail shops along both sides of Cayuga Lake. Now the Indian nation is branching out into cultivating its own crop.

The Cayugas say they will grow marijuana indoors in a 15,000 square foot building under development on their Gakwiyo Garden property, just off Route 414 south of the village of Seneca Falls. They hope to have it operating before the end of the year.

The Cayugas, whose ancestral homeland is centered on the north end of Cayuga Lake, have been selling marijuana since last fall at the tribal Lakeside Trading shop in Union Springs (Cayuga County) and the Cayuga Corner Store on Route 89 near Seneca Falls (Seneca County).

The new businesses join the nation’s existing Arrowhead Hemp enterprise, which has been producing and selling non-THC cannabis hemp products like CBD.

“Similar to the Nation’s other economic development initiatives, cannabis presents an opportunity to generate economic growth for the Nation and its members, while creating jobs for the community,” the Cayugas said in a statement released this week. “Developing our cannabis business is the next step in expanding and diversifying the Cayuga Nation’s economic opportunities and providing long-lasting benefits to the community.”

The Cayugas’ entry into marijuana comes as New York state continues to work through the launch and licensing of recreational marijuana businesses outside of sovereign Indian nations.

New York legalized the possession of small amounts of recreational marijuana as of April 1, 2021. It took months to set up the regulatory agency (the state Office of Cannabis Management) that is writing the rules and regulations for legal marijuana businesses.

The state recently approved a law that speeds up licensing for planting and growing marijuana, so seeds can be planted this year. Licensing for processing and selling is still months away.

But several of the state’s Indian nations, including the Cayugas, Senecas and Akwesasne Mohawks, have already set up, or at least allowed, marijuana businesses on their territories. They cite the sovereignty of their nations in starting ahead of state licensing.

That’s not the only distinction for the tribal marijuana businesses. The state’s marijuana law prohibits businesses in most cases from obtaining both retail (sales) licenses and growing / processing licenses, to prevent “vertical monopolies.” There is a limited exception for the existing medical marijuana licensees.

The Cayugas say their tribal sovereignty allows them to operate both retail and processing (growing) businesses.

“As a sovereign nation, the Cayuga Nation can grow and sell cannabis within its reservation’s boundaries,” the Cayuga’s statement said.

Freeman Klopott, spokesman for the Office of Cannabis Management, previously told syracuse.com / NYUP.com that “dispensaries (marijuana shops) are legal if they are on federally recognized, sovereign tribal land.” He also said the OCM “has the ability to enter into agreements with tribes through tribal compacts to integrate them into the state program if all parties can agree to terms,” though no such agreements exist yet.

The Cayugas said they are working with Bergmann, a Rochester architectural design firm, to develop the growing facility. “The Nation is finalizing the blueprints before beginning the build — working closely with Bergmann to ensure the grow center meets all standards for security, safety and quality,” the Nation said in its news release.

Jake Brewer, who has experience as head grower for a Colorado cannabis company, will oversee development of the Nation’s cannabis businesses.

“Our vision for the future of the Cayuga Nation remains focused on bettering the lives of our members, our community, and our neighbors,” the Cayugas said in their statement. “As we venture forward in our economic development, we remain committed to working closely with local governments to ensure the health and safety of our community.”

War in Ukraine affects cannabis lobbying priorities

by Jonathan Salant, NJ.com | @JDSalant

The U.S. Capitol is seen behind the U.S. flag, Ukrainian flag and the flag of Washington, D.C., in Washington, Tuesday, March, 1, 2022.

Supporters of ending the federal ban on marijuana said the odds of cannabis legislation passing this Congress just grew longer.

That’s because the war in Ukraine is occupying the time and attention that lawmakers otherwise could put to legislation such as issues such as the Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement Act, or MORE Act, and the Secure and Fair Enforcement Act, or SAFE Banking Act.

“I am concerned that as Congress has a limited bandwidth to address things, this will bump marijuana off the agenda,” veteran marijuana lobbyist Justin Strekal said. “Congress has not demonstrated a strong ability to walk and chew gum at the same time.”

Overhauling federal cannabis laws has never been a top priority either in the White House or Capitol Hill, and the issue already had to compete efforts to combat the coronavirus pandemic, jump-start the economy following the last recession, rebuild the nation’s infrastructure, address inflation, lower child care costs, improve health coverage, fight climate change and reduce prescription drug prices.

Now add Ukraine on top of that.

“I expect it’s going to have a significant impact in terms of consideration of cannabis policy reform,’’ said Morgan Fox, political director for NORML, the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws. “With all of the other issues going on, it’s worrisome.”

The House has passed SAFE Banking as a stand-alone bill as well as added it as an amendment to other pieces of legislation, most recently a measure providing federal assistance to help U.S. manufacturers better compete with China.

But the Senate hasn’t been willing to pass the legislation, which would let banks provide financial services to legal cannabis businesses without a restorative justice section. A group of senators, including Cory Booker, are trying to put together their own comprehensive cannabis bill.

The Marijuana Justice Coalition, whose members include Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, American Civil Liberties Union and the United Food and Commercial Workers Union, this week urged House Democratic leaders to bring the MORE Act up for a vote by the end of the month.

“Mass criminalization and over-enforcement of drug law violations have devastated the social and economic fabrics of entire communities, while also tearing apart the lives of millions of individuals and families,” the group said in a letter.

“And while Black, Latino, and Indigenous people have carried the brunt of marijuana criminalization, they have been shut out of the regulated marijuana marketplace due to these very same criminal records in addition to financial barriers to entry,” they said.

Connecticut

by Sean Teehan, NY Cannabis Insider | @SeanPTeehan

Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont signs into law the legalization of recreational-use marijuana on Tuesday, June 22, 2021, in Hartford, Conn. Lamont has signed the bill making Connecticut the 19th state to legalize recreational use of marijuana, which remains an illegal drug under federal law. (Mark Mirko /Hartford Courant via AP)

Tri-state sister Connecticut started accepting lottery applications for prospective cannabis businesses early last month. The state will ultimately license up to 56 businesses in eight categories, plus an undetermined number of cultivators from areas disproportionately impacted by the war on drugs.

Connecticut’s Department of Consumer Protection, the state’s main cannabis industry regulator, will use a lottery system to decide which business applications are reviewed for possible licensure. While New York’s legalization law sets a goal of issuing 50% of its licenses to social equity applicants, Connecticut’s law stipulates that half of them must go to social equity businesses.

For a state with a population of about 3.6 million, Connecticut appears to be issuing a small number of licenses in its first round. According to DCP, it will approve just 12 retail licenses (six general and six social equity) and 10 to delivery services.

The application period for each category lasts 90 days, according to DCP. The department opened applications for retail and disproportionately-affected cultivator licenses on Feb. 3, and the last application period – for transporter businesses – starts March 24.

Massachusetts

by Sean Teehan, NY Cannabis Insider | @SeanPTeehan

Delivery driver Frantz Cantave, left, gives a receipt as he delivers an order of recreational marijuana to Hilary Marcotte outside her home, Friday, July 16, 2021, in Boston. (AP Photo/Elise Amendola)

After a 2016 statewide ballot initiative, Massachusetts became the first East Coast state to legalize adult-use cannabis. The Bay State’s first recreational retail sales commenced about two years later.

Legal Massachusetts marijuana developed a reputation for sky high prices in the market’s early days, with price tags about double what customers in legal markets out west paid, according to the Boston Globe. Experts told the Globe in 2020 that high costs were largely a function of high taxes and a difficult licensing process that slowed the number of producers who could legally grow marijuana and retailers who could sell it.

As of this past fall, however, pot prices in Massachusetts were trending downward, according to Commonwealth Magazine.

One of the hot topics in the Northeast’s most mature adult-use market is the issue of consumption lounges, which have yet to open in Massachusetts. State legislators this session are mulling over a bill that would allow for such establishments, as part of a broader package of reforms to the state’s cannabis laws, according to the Boston Globe. If it passes, cities and towns in the state will be able to decide whether to allow consumption lounges.

Coming up

Here’s what to expect in next week’s NYCI:

  • An exclusive investigation into the state’s medical marijuana fund
  • Cannabis’ role in Gov. Kathy Hochul’s reelection
  • Advice about starting a NY cannabis testing lab from Cannaspire’s Warren Harasz
  • A talk with our friends at NJ Cannabis Insider
  • Recent marijuana research that’s making waves
  • Details of cannabis unionizing efforts in the Empire State
  • And much more.

If you purchase a product or register for an account through a link on our site, we may receive compensation. By using this site, you consent to our User Agreement and agree that your clicks, interactions, and personal information may be collected, recorded, and/or stored by us and social media and other third-party partners in accordance with our Privacy Policy.