New York adult-use marijuana stores ‘on track’ to open this year, governor says

New York is “on track” to open 20 adult-use cannabis dispensaries this year, Gov. Kathy Hochul said.

The governor also said in an exclusive interview with the Advance Media New York editorial board that roughly 20 more stores will open each month after that, according to The (Syracuse) Post-Standard.

There has been some doubt that sales would start before the end of 2022 because:

• A full set of state regulations has not been published.
• The first 150 retailers are to be housed in state-funded locations for social equity businesses, and the agency in charge of the build-outs hasn’t yet confirmed any of its properties.
• There haven’t been any updates on the progress of the Social Equity Cannabis Investment Fund, which will finance those 150 stores.

“We’re going to make sure that this is a model for the rest of the nation – especially with our desire to make sure that people who’ve been affected by the criminal justice system adversely … have the opportunity to work in this area,” Hochul said.

The state Office of Cannabis Management is processing the more than 900 applications it received for the 150 available retail licenses.

Priority will be given to applicants who have a marijuana-related conviction or are related to someone who has.

Source: https://mjbizdaily.com/new-york-adult-use-marijuana-stores-on-track-to-open-this-year/