Equity and enforcement were two leading themes of New York’s legal marijuana market in 2024, according to a package of annual reports published by state regulators last week.
More than half of all adult-use cannabis business licenses have now been awarded to social and economic equity applicants, according to the state Office of Cannabis Management (OCM), while on the enforcement side, officials conducted more than 1,300 inspections, seized more than eight tons of illegal marijuana and issued more than $15 million in fines.
After a slow initial rollout in late 2022, what’s expected to eventually be a massive state marijuana market is finally gaining steam. Late last month, OCM reported that state-licensed retailers had sold more than $1 billion worth of legal cannabis products.
“These achievements highlight New York’s commitment to fostering economic opportunity and ensuring public safety, and signals cannabis as a burgeoning industry in New York,” the agency said in a press release on Thursday, adding that nearly 275 adult-use retailers are now open for business across the state.
Regulators this past year also submitted public comments to federal officials in favor of moving marijuana to Schedule III of the Controlled Substances Act (CSA), the report says, partnered
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