The state has been criticized for what many deem a slow rollout of its licensed retail cannabis program – and that rollout sputtered again last week.
The Office of Cannabis Management Cannabis Control Board had been expected to announce the first batch of recreational pot dispensary licenses granted to general licensing applicants Wednesday. But that meeting was canceled Tuesday night.
The Cannabis Control Board was scheduled to meet to approve a handful of licenses, but postponed that meeting “to finalize review of adult-use license applications currently under consideration for approval by the board,” it said in a statement.
“While we have a batch of licenses ready for approval, there are many more we want to get across the finish line to jumpstart New York’s cannabis market in 2024,” the Control Board said. “After months of licenses being held up by lawsuits from corporate interests, OCM is working hard to process this major backlog of applications – we want to ensure the issuance of as many licenses as possible, as soon as possible.”
The cancellation came after Gov. Kathy Hochul’s office told the board she was not happy with the rate at which it was approving licenses.
“My team got involved and said, ‘No, go back to the drawing board. Work harder. Get this done.’ And no, I’m not satisfied with the pace,” she said at a news conference Friday.
Hochul had expected about 400 retail and grower licenses to be reviewed before the meeting Wednesday, but the board had been prepared to approve just three new retail locations.
“I’ll tell you right now, I’m very fed up with how long it is taking to get these approvals,” Hochul said.
The OCM has said it plans to grant 500 to 1,000 licenses during the general licensing period. The state received 4,324 applications for retail dispensary licenses overall, with more than half of them being social equity applicants.
Nearly 1,500 retail applicants have already secured real estate – which…
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