The New York Office of Cannabis Management (OCM) issued a proximity correction on July 28 that impacts 105 licensed dispensaries and at least 47 pending applicants related to their distances from schools.

The OCM determined that its staff erred in approving locations for these 152 retailers/aspiring retailers through guidance that the office established in 2022, which includes measuring the state’s entrance-to-entrance distance between a dispensary and school. Under state law, cannabis dispensaries must be at least 500 feet from schools.

However, OCM officials said this week that their 2022 entrance-to-entrance guidance is not consistent with the Marijuana Regulation and Taxation Act (MRTA) that former Gov. Andrew Cuomo signed into law in March 2021. Instead, they said, the distance must be measured from a dispensary’s main entrance to the “nearest property line boundary of a school’s ground.” This is a straight-line measurement.

“Reading these sections of law together, a cannabis retail dispensary cannot be within 500 feet of a school’s property line,” according to the OCM’s July 28 overview of the correction. “The office has contacted impacted licensees and applicants by phone and by letter/email with detailed information about the practice correction and timeline.”

The impacted businesses/applicants are primarily located in New York City, including 88 of 105 licensees and 39 of the 47 pending applications, according to the OCM.

New York Office of Cannabis Management

As of July 25, there were 436 licensed adult-use dispensaries in the state, including 177 in the smallest geographic region: New York City.

OCM Acting Executive Director Felicia Reid notified state regulators that the affected businesses include 60 dispensaries that are already open, with the other 45 impacted licensees actively working toward opening their doors, The New York Times reported. The Times received a copy of Reid’s communications with her staff and the impacted businesses.

“To give you this news, and for the weight of it, I am incredibly sorry,” Reid wrote to those impacted.

While the Times initially reported that the OCM is “forcing” 152 cannabis retailers to find new locations after the administrative review of its 2022 guidance, the OCM disputed that word choice.

“Facts matter. This is not accurate,” OCM officials wrote on X. “The office is not forcing 152 cannabis retailers to find new locations.”

The OCM and Gov. Kathy Hochul’s office will be proposing and “aggressively pursuing” a legislative fix for licensed dispensaries whose locations conflict with state law, according to the OCM’s correction overview.  

“This legislation would permit licensees to remain at their present licensed location,” according to the overview. “Importantly, passage of proposed legislation is the prerogative of the New York State Legislature and is not a guarantee.”

In the absence of that legislative fix, the OCM cannot renew permits for the 105 already licensed retailers. In the meantime, dispensaries can remain open until their licenses are up for renewal, according to the OCM.

In other words, the OCM is attempting to grandfather in dispensaries that are already open, but only state lawmakers can make that call.

Meanwhile, the OCM is requiring the 47 pending applicants who are impacted by the office’s miscue to find new locations before moving forward in the application process.

To “lessen the burden” of the OCM’s correction, the office is working with Hochul’s office and the Empire State Development to create a $15 million relief program, from which the applicants can seek up to $250,000 each in coverage to help find new locations or to make capital improvements to their original locations.

“Applicants will still be able to pursue licensure, even if they participate in the [relief] program, but they must find a new location before moving ahead in the application process,” according to the OCM.

The office will also work with these applicants through provisional licenses and extensions on current provisional licenses, according to the OCM.

Damian Fagon, the OCM’s former chief equity officer, who resigned in November following an investigation of unsubstantiated allegations against him, took issue with the $15 million relief program for license applicants, the Times reported.

“A politically motivated rule reversal is now diverting another $15 million from the very communities the law was written to help repair,” he said.

OCM officials said that as their analysis continues, they could identify additional applicants or retail licensees who will be impacted by their correction. If so, the office will contact them directly.

By Dale Sky Jones, Angela Bacca & Etienne Fontan

With profound sorrow, Oaksterdam University announced the sudden and unexpected passing of its founder, Richard Lee, considered the leader who sparked the wave of global cannabis legalization in the 2010s. He passed away in Houston, Texas, on Sunday, July 27. He was 62 years old. A pioneer, visionary, and fearless advocate for justice, Richard reshaped cannabis policy, coined the term “cannabis industry,” and formalized the first quality training in the world. 

Born in Houston, Texas, on October 7, 1962, Richard developed an early interest in music and worked at concert venues in his 20s. While working on lighting as a roadie for Aerosmith in 1990, he suffered a workplace injury that left him paraplegic. He discovered cannabis as a treatment for the resulting chronic nerve pain and quickly became a passionate advocate.

In 1992, he co-founded Legal Marijuana—The Hemp Store in Houston, one of the first hemp retail stores in the U.S. He also converted his conservative Christian parents to cannabis advocacy, beginning a lifelong mission of shifting hearts and minds.

In 1997, Richard moved to Oakland, California, for safe legal access to cannabis and began providing cannabis to the Oakland Cannabis Buyers’ Cooperative (OCBC). He co-founded the Hemp Research Company, conducting early research on sustainable cannabis horticulture. Working closely with OCBC founder Jeff Jones, they helped establish “Oaksterdam” as a safe cannabis district in downtown Oakland.

In 1999, Lee opened the Bulldog Coffeeshop. In 2003, he founded the Oakland Civil Liberties Alliance, which passed Oakland’s Measure Z, deprioritizing cannabis enforcement and laying the groundwork for city taxation and regulation. From 2005 to 2007, Lee published the Oaksterdam News, which had a circulation of over 100,000, further cementing the city’s position as the hub of the cannabis reform movement.

In 2007, Richard founded Oaksterdam University, the first cannabis college in the U.S. His revolutionary vision was to formalize cannabis education and destigmatize the plant. He believed in advertising and real estate – filling empty storefronts with cannabis-related businesses to revitalize his community. Lee opened his doors to media, regulators, and policymakers, making cannabis education accessible, professional, and transparent.

In 2010, Richard became the face and co-proponent of Proposition 19, the first statewide initiative to legalize adult-use cannabis in California. He invested over $1.3 million of his own funds and used his businesses to support the campaign. Though it failed narrowly, it paved the way for future victories around the country and internationally. 

On April 2, 2012, four federal agencies raided Oaksterdam University, Richard’s home, and other businesses. Though no charges were filed, the raid was believed to be politically motivated. He stepped back from leadership, passing the torch to Dale Sky Jones. Despite the setback, the university endured and evolved under her stewardship. It now offers online professional and workforce development training, with over 100,000 graduates from 116 countries, many of whom are today’s business and community leaders. 

“Richard’s courage to fight when it wasn’t easy, when it wasn’t safe, and when few others dared, led to a domino effect of global change that we are still witnessing today,” says Dale Sky Jones. “He didn’t wait for the system to catch up; he worked relentlessly to make it right.”

Jeff Jones, Richard’s longtime collaborator and co-founder of OCBC, added, “Richard Lee assumed monumental risks for over a decade, publicly taking charge of the Oaksterdam mission and taking it to new heights, pushing political boundaries beyond what most could imagine possible.”

Beyond his public legacy, Richard was a mentor, a fighter, a godfather, and a true friend. He was generous, selfless, and driven by belief in the potential of others. He demanded the best because he saw the best in us. Donald Lee, Richard’s youngest brother, shared, “Richard was an inspiration to so many. No less so for his family. That inspiration will never fade.” 

Richard relocated to Houston to care for his mother, Ann Lee, co-founder of Republicans Against Marijuana Prohibition. He remained active in advocacy and stayed close to family. Richard is survived by his mother, Ann; brothers Don, Michael, and Bobby; and several nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his father, Bob Lee, and his eldest brother, Jim Lee. 

Known as Rev, he always said, “Keep the Faith.” We certainly will, Richard. His memory will live on through every Oaksterdam graduate, every policy change he inspired, and every community freed from injustice because of his work. His legacy is one of freedom, justice, and hope. Donations may be made to the Richard Lee Memorial Fund to help with costs and continue to honor his legacy.

Photos courtesy of Oaksterdam University

This article is from an external, unpaid contributor. It does not represent High Times’ reporting and has not been edited for content or accuracy. 

A GOP senator has successfully blocked a proposed ban on hemp THC products that was included in a key spending bill, giving the industry a win amid contentious discussions around intoxicating cannabinoids.

Following intensive debates around the language—which would have prohibited hemp products with any quantifiable amount of THC—Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) stood his ground with a threat to procedurally hold up the appropriations bill covering Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration (Ag/FDA). And to that end, he prevailed in getting the section removed.

Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY), who championed the federal legalization of hemp and its derivatives under the 2018 Farm Bill, wanted to see the hemp ban proceed through the process. But on Tuesday, Sen. John Hoeven (R-ND), chair of the appropriations subcommittee of jurisdiction, told reporters it was ultimately stripped from the legislation, as Politico reported.

“We could never get agreement between the two,” Hoeven said, referring to Paul and McConnell.

When asked whether he feels the hemp ban removal would clear the path to advance the underlying bill ahead of an August recess, the chair said, “I sure hope so.”

A spokesperson for McConnell, meanwhile, said on Tuesday that he “doesn’t want to hold up the process” on spending legislation over hemp and will be “working with the committee on a path forward.”

It should be noted, however, that the hemp ban provisions are still included in the House version of the agriculture appropriations bill, so it’s possible the the language could end up making it into the final version of legislation sent to the president’s desk later this year.

Jonathan Miller, general counsel at the U.S. Hemp Roundtable, told Marijuana Moment that the organization is “deeply grateful to Senator Paul for standing up for the hemp industry,” and they’re “quite encouraged by the intense negotiations that took place.”

“While a substantive deal was not formally reached, we’re hopeful that, from this work, a compromise that protects the hemp industry and hemp farmers will ultimately prevail,” he said.

Ahead of the subcommittee chairman’s remarks on the deal, Paul told Politico that “we have hemp farmers in my state, and this language will destroy them.”

“We told them we’d give consent to get on it, but we want that horrendous language out,” he said.

The debate around federal hemp laws has created tension between the industry and certain players in the marijuana space who supported the ban, arguing that current policies have given hemp businesses a free pass as state-licensed marijuana operators continue to struggle under federal prohibition.

“This has everything to do with arcane Senate procedure, not a lack of support,” Chris Lindsey, vice president of policy and state advocacy at the American Trade Association of Cannabis and Hemp (ATACH), told Marijuana Moment.

“In fact, there is strong bipartisan and bicameral backing for affirming the original intent of the 2018 Farm Bill,” he said. “We will continue to work with Congress to confront the dangers of chemically-converted synthetic THC products while safeguarding CBD and industrial hemp products.”

Marijuana Moment reached out to Paul’s office for comment, but a representative was not immediately available.

Under the legislation that advanced through the Senate Appropriations Committee earlier this month, consumable hemp products with any “quantifiable” amount of THC would be banned.

Paul told Marijuana Moment late last month that the proposal—which largely mirrors provisions of a House version of the spending bill, championed by Rep. Andy Harris (R-MD)—would “completely destroy” the industry.

On the House side, while Harris amended report language attached to the chamber’s bill clarifying that it’s not the intent to stop people from accessing “industrial or non-intoxicating hemp-derived cannabinoid products with trace or insignificant amounts of THC,” the bill itself still says that products containing any “quantifiable” amounts of THC couldn’t be marketed. And it’s rare to find CBD items without any natural traces of THC.

Paul recently filed a bill that would go in the opposite direction of Harris’s ban, proposing to triple the concentration of THC that the crop could legally contain, while addressing multiple other concerns the industry has expressed about federal regulations.

The senator introduced the legislation, titled the Hemp Economic Mobilization Plan (HEMP) Act, in June. It mirrors versions he’s sponsored over the last several sessions.

Harris, for his part, told Marijuana Moment that he’s not concerned about any potential opposition in the Senate—and he also disputed reports about the scope of what his legislation would do to the industry.

The Congressional Research Service (CRS) released a report last month stating that the legislation would “effectively” prohibit hemp-derived cannabinoid products. Initially it said that such a ban would prevent the sale of CBD as well, but the CRS report was updated to exclude that language for reasons that are unclear.

The hemp language is largely consistent with appropriations and agriculture legislation that was introduced, but not ultimately enacted, under the last Congress.

Hemp industry stakeholders rallied against that proposal, an earlier version of which was also included in the base bill from the subcommittee last year. It’s virtually identical to a provision of the 2024 Farm Bill that was attached by a separate committee last May via an amendment from Rep. Mary Miller (R-IL), which was also not enacted into law.

A leading alcohol industry association, meanwhile, has called on Congress to dial back language in the House spending bill that would ban most consumable hemp products, instead proposing to maintain the legalization of naturally derived cannabinoids from the crop and only prohibit synthetic items.

Wine & Spirits Wholesalers of America (WSWA) President and CEO Francis Creighton said in a press release that “proponents and opponents alike have agreed that this language amounts to a ban.”

Separately, key GOP congressional lawmakers—including one member who supports marijuana legalization—don’t seem especially concerned about provisions in the bill despite concern from stakeholders that it would put much of the hemp industry in jeopardy by banning most consumable products derived from the plant.

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Miller, of the U.S. Hemp Roundtable, told congressional lawmakers in April that the market is “begging” for federal regulations around cannabis products.

At the hearing, Rep. James Comer (R-KY) also inquired about FDA inaction around regulations, sarcastically asking if it’d require “a gazillion bureaucrats that work from home” to regulate cannabinoids such as CBD.

A report from Bloomberg Intelligence (BI) last year called cannabis a “significant threat” to the alcohol industry, citing survey data that suggests more people are using cannabis as a substitute for alcoholic beverages such a beer and wine.

Last November, meanwhile, a beer industry trade group put out a statement of guiding principles to address what it called “the proliferation of largely unregulated intoxicating hemp and cannabis products,” warning of risks to consumers and communities resulting from THC consumption.