The New York Senate passes the gray market cannabis bill

The New York Senate this week voted to pass a bill to stifle the state’s gray cannabis market, giving regulators the power to seize illegal weed and increasing fines for unlicensed operators. State Senator Liz Krueger introduced the measure on Sunday, and on Wednesday the Senate voted to pass the bill, a sign of lawmakers’ interest in tackling New York’s unregulated marijuana market before the legal sale of recreational cannabis later this year.

Justin Flagg, a spokesman for Krueger, said the bill would empower the New York Office of Cannabis Management (OCM) and the Department of Taxation and Finance to crack down on unregulated cannabis retailers, which have since become outrageously ubiquitous in Manhattan and other neighborhoods State legislatures legalized adult-use cannabis last year. The OCM is currently working to establish rules for the regulated market, which is expected to begin licensed sales of recreational cannabis by the end of 2022.

“This law is aimed at gray market operators, such as cannabis retail stores, that emerged in the post-legalization but pre-licensed era before the incorporation of licensed businesses,” Flagg said in an email cited by Syracuse.com.

Flagg added that Krueger drafted the legislation in conjunction with OCM and the Tax and Treasury Department, noting that their action “was prompted by the difficulty of enforcement against several illegal cannabis stores that were difficult to close under existing law.” “.

The bill gives the OCM the power to seize illegal cannabis and expands the powers of the tax and finance departments to impose fines on unlicensed cannabis operators. The measure also doubles civil penalties for anyone knowingly possessing illegal weed, which is defined as taxable cannabis products for which no taxes have been paid. Flagg clarified that the legislation applies to all cannabis products not grown or purchased from a state-licensed cannabis facility.

Fines for illicit weed doubled in new York

Penalties for illegal cannabis would increase from $200 per ounce of flower to $400 per ounce. Fines for other cannabis products would also be doubled, with edibles increasing to $10 per milligram of THC and concentrates to $100 per gram, while fines for each illegal cannabis plant would increase to $1,000. The bill also allows the tax and finance departments to revoke registration certificates for businesses that sell or possess illegal cannabis.

Flagg said restricting the illicit market is in part a safety issue, with unlicensed operators not following packaging rules and other regulations aimed at restricting children’s cannabis use.

“Addressing these illegal operators will help ensure licensed stock operators have the opportunity to thrive and also help ensure cannabis products are sold in a responsible manner,” Flagg said.

Joshua Waterman, a cannabis breeder and co-founder of the Legacy Growers Association, told local media that Krueger’s bill was drafted with good intentions but he does not support the legislation.

“While we would support the idea of ​​closing pharmacies that are flooding the market with … products from other states, we just don’t see that in this bill,” he said. “I fear this will be another way for the state to punish and penalize underclass individuals, particularly minorities.”

Waterman added that the bill will increase legacy growers’ suspicions about legalization and make them less likely to join the ranks of the regulated market, which has been a goal pushed by lawmakers and regulators.

“The state and OCM keep saying they want to engage legacy people and incentivize entry into the legal market,” Waterman said. “Publishing a bill to stop legacy operations before licensing applications are allowed is a disgrace and really shows where lawmakers stand when it comes to the legends that the cannabis industry has created without ever asking for their support .”