New York State Cannabis Timeline
Explore New York's Cannabis Timeline
Step back in time as we explore the remarkable milestones, groundbreaking legislation, and tireless efforts of advocates that have shaped the cannabis industry in New York over the last decade.
From the early days of skepticism to present-day acceptance and innovation, we've uncovered the pivotal moments that have propelled New York to the forefront of the cannabis movement. Check them out below 👇
Hemp (Low-THC Cannabis Plant)
2014
The Agricultural Act of 2014, commonly known as the 2014 Farm Bill, was signed into federal law, allowing states to establish hemp research programs. New York was one of the states that took immediate action.
2015
New York launched its Industrial Hemp Agricultural Research Pilot Program, allowing a limited number of educational institutions to grow and study hemp.
2017
Governor Andrew Cuomo signed legislation solidifying the status of industrial hemp as an agricultural commodity under New York State law.
2018
The federal 2018 Farm Bill was signed into law, removing hemp from the Controlled Substances Act and making it a legal crop. This opened the door for widespread cultivation, distribution, and sale of hemp products.
2019
New York State introduced more comprehensive guidelines for the growth, sale, distribution, transportation, and processing of industrial hemp and hemp extracts, including Cannabidiol (CBD).
Late 2019 - Early 2020
The state started accepting applications for hemp cultivation and processing, including the creation of CBD products.
October 2020
The New York State Department of Health pre-filed legislation for regulating the hemp industry, including cannabinoid hemp processors, retailers, and licenses.
January 2021
Governor Cuomo proposed the Cannabis Regulation and Taxation Act which included provisions about hemp regulation.
March 2021
The Marijuana Regulation and Taxation Act (MRTA) was signed into law, covering both cannabis and hemp regulation. The Office of Cannabis Management was designated to oversee the hemp industry as well.
Medical Cannabis
July 2014
Governor Andrew Cuomo signed the Compassionate Care Act, legalizing medical cannabis.
January 2016
The New York State Medical Marijuana Program was officially launched.
2017 - 2018
Additional qualifying conditions were added, making more people eligible for medical cannabis.
2019 - 2020
Regulations were loosened to allow various forms of medical cannabis, including lozenges, tablets, and certain non-smokable forms of ground plant material.
Adult Use
December 2018
A report from the New York State Department of Health recommended the legalization of adult-use cannabis.
2019 - 2020
Multiple attempts were made to include adult-use legalization in the state budget, but these efforts failed.
March 31, 2021
Governor Andrew Cuomo signed the Marijuana Regulation and Taxation Act (MRTA), legalizing the adult use of cannabis.
April 2021
Possession and use became legal for adults 21 and older, but sales were not yet authorized.
March 15, 2022 – June 30, 2022
The application window for the Adult-Use Conditional Cultivator License approved by the Cannabis Control Board.
June 23, 2022
The Cannabis Control Board (Board) approved the application and opening of the application window for Conditional Processors beginning June 28, 2022 through August 31, 2022.
This application opportunity was only available to active cannabinoid hemp processor license-holders who applied for their license before January 1, 2022.
August 25, 2022
Applications Open for Conditional Adult-Use Retail Dispensary License (CAURD).
Dec 29, 2022
The first recreational cannabis dispensary, Housing Works Cannabis Co, opens in Manhattan. Governor Hochul announces first adult-use cannabis retail sales made in New York state history.
June 20, 2023
Social Equity Fund is “funded”. New York Cannabis Program lands $150 million investment for CAURD licensees.
August 2, 2023
Lawsuit filed against CAURD process.
August 7, 2023
Preliminary injunction for CAURD.
August 9, 2023
September 12, 2023
Oct 4 - Dec 23, 2023
OCM will accept applications seeking a retail or microbusiness license.
February 16, 2024
OCM announces a set of new licenses
Ensure compliance with NY requirements
Use Flourish's nationally recognized software platform to run day to day operations and comply with New York Seed to Sale Track and Trace requirements.
The latest guidance from Licensing | Office of Cannabis Management (ny.gov) is here.
*** This is a developing set of policies, and this page will be updated. ***
NY Annual Cultivation Report
The state requires Adult Use Conditional Cultivators to file an annual report. Don't fall behind on this record keeping.
Adult-Use Conditional Cultivators must maintain the following records in an Annual Cultivation Report for submission to the Office after one year of licensure and then upon license transition, as well as to be made available to the Office upon request.
Flourish will allow you to:
- Document all plants and plant movements across stages as well as comply with labeling requirements.
- Flourish has full recall and traceability capabilities to pull and report on production history in a matter of clicks. This is not only useful for regulators. It is a lifesaver in case of a recall.
- Flourish can document and report on all seeds, clones, and materials used in cultivation.
- Use Flourish's software to record propagation treatments, soil amendments, and agricultural inputs for your grow.
- Flourish's cultivation software includes the ability to record notes for IPM and scouting.
- Flourish supports submitting and recording lab results in accordance with state requirements.
- Document waste and waste disposal within Flourish's software.
- And we do much more... schedule a demo today.
NY Traceability Software Requirement
New York Adult Use Conditional Guidance requires include the following:
In time for the growing season, the licensee must have or develop an on-premises based identification and traceability system that allows the cannabis product to be traced back to the licensee and specific production site, to the block and bed level, and traced forward up the supply-chain to the next distribution point. The license holder must be able to link harvested cannabis product by batch number or harvest date to the production records. Such data must be made available to the Office upon request and in the Annual Cultivation Report.
This is core to Flourish's functionality. Flourish's software goes beyond compliance to help you enable and drive your business, but the essential function of seed-to-sale traceability is baked in at each step along the way.
NYS BioTrack STS Solution
From compliance@ocm.ny.gov:
As previously advised in an email communication sent on December 20, 2022, Adult Use (AU) licensees (AUCC, AUCP, and CAURD) and Registered Organizations will need to begin contracting with a vendor or vendors for Seed-to-Sale (STS) and for licensees authorized to conduct retail sales point-of-sale (POS) solutions.
The Office of Cannabis Management (Office) has contracted with BioTrackTHC as its Seed-to-Sale (STS) traceability system. Effective November 1, 2023, all AU licensee’s will be required to have a third-party STS/POS system in place that can directly interface with the New York State BioTrack STS solution We are sharing the Traceability REST API document from the state of Florida, BioTrack STS system. This document provides the high level structure and details for third-party STS/POS systems to connect to the BioTrack THC platform via API and submit sales and traceability data. While New York State’s Office of Cannabis Management works to finalize our API documentation with BioTrack, you may wish to share this document with your selected STS/POS vendor as a model to ensure that their system meets the requirements to report sales and traceability data via API. The Office may make additional edits to the requirements to capture specific NYS reporting requirements and will communicate those as they become available.
Please respond to this email by October 16, 2023, with the name of the vendor you intend to use moving forward for POS and/or STS and whether or not your vendor(s) is currently in place.
Please forward any questions regarding the attached Traceability REST API documentation to Compliance@ocm.ny.gov.
Do I have to use BioTrack? NO.
The New York State Office of Cannabis Management General Licensing Application
Frequently Asked Questions is published here. Operators have a choice of business automation software. Flourish is one of those providers.
For an LOI or to take advantage of our special and limited-time offer for NYS Cultivators!
From October 4, 2023 - the end of the initial licensing period listed here (currently ending December 18, 2023), we're offering Flourish Cultivation Software for only $420 for the first year!
Who is BioTrack?
2010
BioTrack was founded in 2010 as a software company specializing in seed-to-sale tracking solutions for the cannabis industry.
March 2018
In March 2018, Helix TCS (OTCQB: HLIX) announced the acquisition of BioTrack. The acquisition was aimed at enhancing Helix TCS's portfolio with BioTrack's expertise in seed-to-sale tracking and compliance software.
After the acquisition, BioTrack continued to operate under its brand as a subsidiary of Helix TCS. Helix TCS and BioTrack worked on integrating their technologies and expanding their presence in the growing legal cannabis market in the United States.
February 2021
In February 2021, Forian Inc. (FORA), a healthcare technology company, announced its acquisition of Helix TCS, including its subsidiary BioTrack. This acquisition marked Forian Inc.'s entry into the cannabis technology sector, leveraging BioTrack's software solutions.
Forian's Focus on Data and Analytics:
Following the acquisition by Forian Inc., there was a strategic shift towards leveraging BioTrack's data and analytics capabilities to provide insights and solutions to the cannabis industry.
2023
Who is Alleaves? There are few details about the ownership: Forian Announces the Sale of BioTrack to Alleaves
FYI Alleaves also purchased Akerna’s cannabis assets: MJ Freeway/MJ Platform/Ample Organics and government system Leaf Data Systems: Akerna Announces Sale of Software Business to MJ Freeway Acquisition Co, Coinciding with Merger with Gryphon Digital Mining