New York launches $5M grant program for cannabis social equity retailers
- New York has established a $5 million grant program to support startup costs for adult-use cannabis social equity retail licensees in the state.
- The grants, ranging from $10,000 to $30,000, are for Conditional Adult-Use Retail Dispensary (CAURD) licenses, aimed at "justice-involved" individuals and qualifying nonprofits.
- CAURD license holders must submit an application to receive the grant, which will be distributed on a first-come, first-served basis.
- These grants aim to assist CAURD license holders who have faced challenges in the state's adult-use cannabis rollout, including licensing delays, capital shortages, and local government opt-outs.
New York has established a $5 million grant program to support startup costs for adult-use cannabis social equity retail licensees in the state.
The grants, implemented by the Office of Cannabis Management (OCM) and Empire State Development, will fund $10,000 to $30,000 of initial costs for Conditional Adult-Use Retail Dispensary (CAURD) licenses, which are reserved for “justice-involved” individuals and nonprofits that meet certain criteria.
To apply, CAURD license holders must submit:
Grants will be distributed on a first-come, first-served basis.
CAURD holders have faced numerous challenges amid New York’s rocky adult-use rollout, including licensing issuance and processing delays, litigation, capital shortages, securing real estate and local government opt-outs.
Adult-use cannabis legalization and retail in New York was signed into law in March 2021, but the state’s first legal adult-use retailer didn’t open until December 2022.