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Ruling allows some pot dispensary licenses in New York to go ahead

Published  March 29, 2023 10:54am EDT
Cannabis
FOX 5 NY
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - DECEMBER 29: Cannabis products are seen on display at Housing Works Cannabis Co on December 29, 2022 in New York City. New York officials and Housing Works leadership held a press conference earlier today, ahead of the grand opening of Housing Works Cannabis Co, New York state's first legal cannabis dispensary. It is one of the first recreational cannabis dispensaries to be awarded a CAURD license in the state of New York. All sales from the dispensary will be directed to parent organization Housing Works, Inc and will be used to address HIV/AIDS and homelessness crisis. (Photo by Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images) article

Cannabis products are seen on display. (Photo by Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)

NEW YORK - New York officials will be able to issue licenses for recreational marijuana dispensaries in some parts of the state after an appeals court narrowed the scope of a temporary injunction that had halted them because of a legal challenge.

The ruling Tuesday from the U.S. Second Circuit Court of Appeals allows the state to hand out licenses in Brooklyn, central New York, the mid-Hudson region and western New York, while upholding the block on them in the Finger Lakes region while a lawsuit continues.

Gov. Hochul proposes crackdown on illegal pot shops

Under a new bill proposed today, New York's Office of Cannabis Management and state tax officials would have expanded power to crack down on unlicensed activity across the state.

A federal judge in Albany issued a temporary injunction in November against the licenses being handed out in those areas, after a lawsuit filed by Variscite NY One. The company, owned by a Michigan resident, is challenging how New York is issuing its licenses.

In designing the New York market, legislators intentionally looked for the first round of licenses to go to those who had pot convictions in their pasts or their relatives, in an attempt to make sure those directly impacted by drug law enforcement had access to the new opportunities.

Spike in ER visits among kids after ingesting, inhaling marijuana worry parents

Police said they have seen a particular spike in kids who have ingested weed gummies.

Variscite's lawsuit, which is ongoing, says that's a violation of constitutional interstate commerce protections.

An email seeking comment was sent to one of the company's attorneys.

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In a statement, Gov. Kathy Hochul said she was pleased by the decision and "for the first time, New Yorkers in nearly every region of the state will have access to safer, high-quality, adult-use cannabis products."

The issuing of licenses in nine other regions of the state, including the rest of New York City, were not impacted by the lawsuit or the injunction.

Associated Press wire services helped contribute to this report.