New York Bill Encouraging Businesses To Use Hemp For Construction And Other Purposes Heads To Governor

The New York Senate and Assembly have passed a bill to encourage businesses to use hemp materials for packaging, construction and other industrial purposes. After final procedural steps, the measure will be on its way to the governor.

The legislation amends state statute to stipulate that the Agriculture Commissioner would need to work with the Urban Development Corporation, hemp workgroup and stakeholders who use (or “may potentially use”) hemp “to develop and promote the use of hemp by businesses for purposes such as packaging, construction, and other uses.”

Sen. Michelle Hinchey (D), a consistent proponent of hemp as an environmentally sustainable alternative to other materials, introduced her bill on the matter before it was substituted for an identical Assembly-passed measure and then cleared the Senate on Tuesday in a unanimous 63-0 vote. The Assembly version, sponsored by Assemblymember Donna Lupardo (D), passed in that chamber by a vote of 133-5 back in February.

The purpose of the legislation is to “encourage the use of industrial hemp grown in New York by businesses.”

#NYSenate S8496, sponsored by Senator @michellehinchey, passed (61-0, unofficial). Relates to industrial hemp development:https://t.co/iJ18cyF4Ou

— New York State Senate (@NYSenate) May 17, 2022

“New York is a leader in the cultivation and processing of hemp, especially for cannabinoid hemp,” the bill’s justification section says. “The market for New York industrial hemp is still developing and the state needs to take an active role in researching, identifying, and promoting hemp to industries that may incorporate it into their products.”

“For example, as the market for sustainable, biodegradable, non-petroleum-based packaging grows, so do the opportunities for New York produced industrial hemp as an ingredient in these products,” it continues. “This legislation will encourage renewed focus by the State to work with growers, processors and businesses that are end users to expand market opportunities.”

—Marijuana Moment is already tracking more than 1,000 cannabis, psychedelics and drug policy bills in state legislatures and Congress this year. Patreon supporters pledging at least $25/month get access to our interactive maps, charts and hearing calendar so they don’t miss any developments.Learn more about our marijuana bill tracker and become a supporter on Patreon to get access.—

Hinchey’s interest in this area of cannabis policy has been evident this session, as the senator also filed legislation in February that would promote recycling in the marijuana industry once retail sales officially launch.

The bill would require cannabis shops to apply a $1 deposit for any marijuana products sold in single-use plastic containers and also reimburse consumers for that fee if they return the container.

The senator is also behind a separate bill filed last year that would prioritize hemp-based packaging over synthetic plastics for marijuana products.

The recycling bill is identical to an Assembly version filed by Assemblywoman Patricia Fahy (D) last year.

Meanwhile, another senator filed a bill last week that would legalize what would essentially be licensed community marijuana gardens for people who aren’t able to cultivate cannabis at their own homes.

The bill from Sen. Jeremy Cooney (D) “will ensure individuals who do not have a residence that is suitable for personal cultivation, such as most renters and individuals living in urban communities, still have the opportunity to utilize personal cultivation in a safe and controlled setting,” a justification memo attached to the legislation states.

As it stands, adults 21 and older will be able to start growing up to six plants, only three of which could be mature, starting 18 months after the first adult-use retailers launch, which is expected to happen later this year.

Regulators also approved revised rules last month permitting medical cannabis patients to grow their own marijuana. Those proposed regulations are under a public comment period.

Separately, the mayor of New York City has signaled his interest in having licensed marijuana grows on the rooftops of public housing buildings. But recognizing the potential federal conflict, he said last month that the administration intends to seek a “waiver” to permit such activity.

In any case, with the state legislative session set to end on June 2, there’s little time left to pass pending cannabis reform proposals that Cooney and others have introduced in recent months.

For example, the senator also filed a bill last month that’s meant to encourage banks to work with state-legal marijuana businesses by allowing regulators to disclose certain information about cannabis licensees to financial institutions.

Separately, Cooney and other New York lawmakers also sought to provide tax breaks for the forthcoming marijuana market, approving a budget proposal that Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) signed last month that would do just that.

Cooney filed a standalone bill in December seeking a similar carve-out for the state’s burgeoning cannabis industry, and Assemblymember Donna Lupardo (D) followed suit in her chamber.

Regulators have been hard at work getting the industry ready for the launch of retail sales this year.

Earlier this month, the CCB approved a second batch of applications for recreational marijuana cultivators, raising the total to 88 accepted licensees.

Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) signed a bill from Assembly Majority Leader Crystal Peoples-Stokes (D) and Hinchey to create conditional licenses in February. The intent is to allow existing hemp operators to get a head start on growing marijuana to meet demand for the forthcoming industry.

Regulators also advanced a rule in March to make it so people with prior marijuana convictions, or whose family members have been harmed by criminalization, will get the first round of adult-use marijuana retailer licenses—ahead of existing medical cannabis businesses. A recent poll found that most New Yorkers voters are against that proposal.

Hochul has repeatedly emphasized her interest in efficiently implementing the legalization law.

The governor released a State of the State book in January that called for the creation of a $200 million public-private fund to specifically help promote social equity in the state’s burgeoning marijuana market.

That proposal was also cited in the governor’s executive budget, which was released in January. The budget also estimated that New York stands to generate more than $1.25 billion in marijuana tax revenue over the next six years.

Hochul said that while cannabis business licenses have yet to be approved since legalization was signed into law last year, the market stands to generate billions of dollars, and it’s important to “create opportunities for all New Yorkers, particularly those from historically marginalized communities.”

Enacting legislation that expedites licensing could help the state reduce the number of businesses that are effectively using the legal “gifting” provision of the state’s marijuana law to give away cannabis for “free” if a non-marijuana-related purchase is made.

New York regulators recently issued warnings to more than two dozen businesses that they allege are either illegally selling marijuana without a license or exploiting the “gifting” component.

Separately, the state Department of Labor separately announced in recent guidance that New York employers are no longer allowed to drug test most workers for marijuana.

Rhode Island Lawmakers Unveil Revised Marijuana Legalization Bill, With Committee Votes Set For This Week

Photo courtesy of Pixabay.

New York Lawmakers Approve Governor’s Key Marijuana Regulatory Appointees To ‘Jumpstart’ Legalization

The newly inaugurated governor of New York says she wants to “jumpstart” the implementation of marijuana legalization—and she took a major step on Wednesday by making two key regulatory appointments to oversee the state’s cannabis market that were quickly confirmed by the Senate during a special session.

Former New York Assemblywoman Tremaine Wright (D) will serve as chair the Cannabis Control Board, and former Drug Policy Alliance (DPA) staffer Christopher Alexander will be the executive director of the state’s Office of Cannabis Management.

The Senate Finance Committee advanced the two nominations earlier on Wednesday prior to the final vote by the full body.

The #NYSenate has voted to confirm the nomination of Christopher Alexander, Executive Director, State Office of Cannabis Management. Watch session: https://t.co/szNYHIaNkW

— New York State Senate (@NYSenate) September 1, 2021

“We’re definitely excited that the governor has prioritized rolling this out,” Alexander said at the hearing. “We had a six month delay—we’re behind six months already—and so the [governor’s] priority, she’s been very clear that she wants to get this going.”

Gov. Kathy Hochul (D), who replaced former Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) last week after he resigned amid a sexual harassment scandal, has been supportive of the legislature’s passage of the adult-use legalization bill this year. And while her predecessor faced criticism as negotiations with legislators on potential appointments stalled, Hochul has now taken the helm and is working with leaders on how to move the process forward.

“One of my top priorities is to finally get New York’s cannabis industry up and running—this has been long overdue, but we’re going to make up for lost time,” Hochul said in a press release.

The newly confirmed officials “bring a wealth of knowledge and experience to their new roles, and I know they will do a tremendous job of outlining and implementing regulations that are safe, fair and transparent, and that recognize the need to remedy the impact that prohibition has had on communities of color,” she said.

The governor said at a press conference on Tuesday that getting the marijuana market moving is “very important to me,” adding that naming regulators are among the “long-overdue decisions pertaining to establishing cannabis in the state of New York.”

“There’s no reason why simple announcements in terms of who the executive director [of the Office of Cannabis Management] is and who the chairperson is were not done in time, but I’m going to make up for that lost time,” she said, criticizing Cuomo for not getting the job done. “I want those decisions made, and I’ve made the decisions as to who I want, but they need confirmation from the legislature.”

Under New York’s legalization law, the independent Office of Cannabis Management within the New York State Liquor Authority was established and will be responsible for regulating the recreational cannabis market as well as the existing medical marijuana and hemp programs. It will be overseen by a five-member Cannabis Control Board. Three members will be appointed by the governor, and the Senate and Assembly would appoint one member each. It’s not yet clear when those other appointments will be made.

Sen. Liz Krueger (D), who chairs the Finance Committee and was the lead sponsor of the Marijuana Regulation and Taxation Act (MRTA) that created the state’s legal cannabis law, said she is “extremely pleased” with the first two appointments.

“The process of implementing MRTA has been delayed too long, but finally we are seeing some light at the end of the tunnel,” she said in a press release.

Very pleased with the nominations of Chris Alexander and Tremaine Wright to OCM and CCB, and grateful to @GovKathyHochul for moving swiftly to get the process of implementing adult-use marijuana back on track after months of needless delay. pic.twitter.com/9Vq1fDhmcP

— Senator Liz Krueger (@LizKrueger) September 1, 2021

Kassandra Frederique, executive director of DPA, said in a press release that “New Yorkers have been clear that cannabis is a critical criminal justice issue and that the communities that have been most impacted should have a crucial role in governing the new market and the larger regulatory institution, which historically has not been the case in other states that have legalized cannabis,”

“By moving swiftly to establish the adult use cannabis program after delays under her predecessor and nominating leaders who have long been involved in the fight for marijuana justice in New York, Governor Hochul is sending a strong signal that the landmark racial and economic justice provisions we fought so hard for in the Marijuana Regulation and Taxation Act will be taken seriously and implemented accordingly,” she said.

I am convening an Extraordinary Session of the Legislature to begin tomorrow. We will:

☑️ Extend the eviction moratorium to January 15 and provide relief for tenants & landlords

☑️ Make open meetings safer & more accessible

☑️ Confirm nominees to the State’s cannabis program

— Kathy Hochul (@GovKathyHochul) August 31, 2021

Alexander, who has also served as a lobbyist for the Canadian-based marijuana company Village, said during an Albany Law School webinar in May that social economic equity should be a priority in marijuana reform.

Frederique said that both appointees “understand the deep harm that criminalization has caused to individuals and communities—especially communities of color—across the state.” And their “past work has reflected a commitment to working with people who have been directly impacted by prohibition and demonstrated a belief in evidence-based policies that center equity and justice.”

The #NYSenate has voted to confirm the nomination of Tremaine Wright, Chair, Cannabis Control Board. Watch live. https://t.co/szNYHIaNkW

— New York State Senate (@NYSenate) September 1, 2021

As it stands, adults 21 and older can possess up to three ounces of cannabis or 24 grams of concentrates in New York—and they can also smoke marijuana in public anywhere tobacco can be smoked—but there aren’t any shops open for business yet.

“Nominating and confirming individuals with diverse experiences and subject matter expertise, who are representative of communities from across the state, to the Cannabis Control Board is a priority for Gov. Hochul,” spokesperson Jordan Bennett recently told The New York Post. “We look forward to working with the legislature to keep this process moving forward.”

Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins (D) and Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie (D) have also had conversations with the governor about her priorities for cannabis implementation in recent days. The speaker told The Post that Hochul “did say [confirming regulators] was something that she wanted us all to concentrate on—and we agreed.”

That’s welcome news for advocates who had grown frustrated with Cuomo for slow-walking the appointments. There were serious disagreements between the former administration and lawmakers about who to appoint, but they’re encouraged by the new governor’s moves that signal her administration will be proactive in getting the regulatory infrastructure set up in a timely manner.

Adding pressure to get the market up and running is the fact that regulators in neighboring New Jersey recently released rules for its adult-use marijuana program, which is being implemented after voters approved a legalization referendum last year.

When it comes to Hochul’s overall stance on cannabis policy, she was a consistent advocate for the prior administration’s legalization plan and said the reform was “long overdue” for New York. She also defended Cuomo’s proposal in the face of criticism of various provisions from some advocates, but she told Marijuana Moment in January that there was room for amendments, many of which were made to address activists’ concerns.

While serving as lieutenant governor, Hochul said in an interview with Cheddar that she wants to ensure that the emerging industry is equitable and that “communities of color will understand exactly what’s involved in applying for these licenses as soon as they’re available.”

After Cuomo signed legalization into law in March, the official said, “not only will this help correct an unjust system that targets marginalized communities, it will create jobs & invest in those who have been historically underserved.”

In July, a New York senator filed a bill to create a provisional marijuana licensing category so that farmers could begin cultivating and selling cannabis ahead of the formal rollout of the adult-use program. The bill has been referred to the Senate Rules Committee.

The state comptroller recently projected that New York stands to eventually generate $245 million in annual marijuana revenue.

For the first year of cannabis sales, the state is expected to see just $20 million in tax and fee collections. That will be part of an estimated $26.7 billion in new revenues that New York is expected to generate in fiscal year 2021-2022 under a budget that the legislature passed in April.

“Cannabis legalization will create more than 60,000 new jobs, spurring $3.5 billion in economic activity and generating an estimated $300 million in tax revenue when fully implemented,” the former governor’s office said in January.

Meanwhile, a New York lawmaker introduced a bill in June that would require the state to establish an institute to research the therapeutic potential of psychedelics.

Senators Flooded With Input On Federal Marijuana Legalization Bill