CCG Holds Webinar on Adult-Use Legalization in NYS
On Thursday, October 28, Castetter Cannabis Group (CCG) held the first installment in their new webinar series. The webinar addressed the future of adult-use cannabis in NYS, detailing legislative issues surrounding legalization and the political outlook for adult-use in New York.
CCG CEO Kaelan Castetter hosted the webinar, created in coordination with the CCG team. The full presentation can be found below.
Castetter began by focusing on past legislative pushes to legalize marijuana in New York state. Previously, two major, competing bills sought to pave the way for legalization: the Cannabis Regulation and Taxation Act, or CRTA, introduced by Governor Cuomo in his FY2021 budget bill; and the Marihuana Regulation and Taxation Act, or MRTA, introduced by Assembly Majority Leader Crystal People-Stokes and State Senator Liz Kruger.
Castetter discussed the two competing bills and the various legislative areas where they differed, including tax rates, revenue allocation, social equity plans, and governing bodies. He also discussed the Office of Cannabis Management (OCM), which would be the authority responsible for marijuana in New York, and how that office might look under each bill.
The CRTA, for instance, would establish the highest effective tax rate in the nation, while the MRTA presented a much more reasonably 22%. The MRTA also dictates tax revenue to be allocated to social equity programs and disadvantaged communities. The CRTA, although promising to establish these social equity programs after legalization, does not include specifics in the bill.
This discrepancy has been perhaps the largest roadblock in legalizing adult-use in New York. As Castetter discussed in the webinar, it represents the two major motivations for legalizing adult-use: on one hand, advocates see the promising tax revenues and economic opportunities as the chief function of an adult-use program; on the other, supporters of the MRTA see adult-use legalization as a principle step of righting-the-wrongs of the drug war and reinvesting in communities disproportionally affected by marijuana prohibition.
Castetter ended the webinar with an extensive Q&A section, answering attendee questions on the path to legalization and the future of adult-use in the state.
Next Up: New York Hemp Extract Regulations
CCG will be continuing their webinar series with a presentation and Q&A on the new NYS hemp extract regulations, released last month. This webinar will seek to provide regulatory background on the regulations, analysis of their effects, and to assist hemp industry stakeholders as they adapt their operations to fit these provisions.
The webinar will take place Thursday, November 19, from 9:30AM - 11:30AM. Please visit the Eventbrite page to register.
For more information on the CCG Adult-Use webinar, please find the full presentation below.
New York Adult Use Outlook CCG Insights
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