This week, the New York State Cannabis Control Board (CCB) approved a settlement in the lawsuit that has delayed dispensary openings across the state. According to a press release from the CCB, until the plaintiffs agree to the terms, and the state Supreme Court approves it, the settlement will remain confidential.
But if everyone does sign off on it, a path forward should follow for the more than 400 dispensary applicants currently hanging in limbo.
In August, a group of service-disabled veterans filed suit against the state, saying they had been unfairly left out of the first round of licensees. They argued that, according to the 2021 Marihuana Regulation and Taxation Act, the first set of retail licenses should have gone to communities disproportionately impacted by cannabis regulations, distressed farmers, veterans who incurred a disability as a result of their service and women- and minority-owned businesses.
The lawsuit claimed the Office of Cannabis Management (OCM) and the CCB ran afoul of the law when they created the Conditional Adult-Use Retail Dispensary (CAURD) license program, which limited the first round of licensees to “justice involved individuals” who either had a past marijuana-related conviction or a relationship to someone who did.
These arguments echo those made