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The New York Senate and Assembly have passed a bill to encourage businesses to use hemp materials for packaging, construction and other industrial purposes. After final procedural steps, the measure will be on its way to the governor.<\/p>\n
The legislation amends state statute to stipulate that the Agriculture Commissioner would need to work with the Urban Development Corporation, hemp workgroup and stakeholders who use (or \u201cmay potentially use\u201d) hemp \u201cto develop and promote the use of hemp by businesses for purposes such as packaging, construction, and other uses.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sen. Michelle Hinchey (D), a consistent proponent of hemp as an environmentally sustainable alternative to other materials, introduced her bill on the matter before it was substituted for an identical Assembly-passed measure and then cleared the Senate on Tuesday in a unanimous 63-0 vote. The Assembly version<\/a>, sponsored by Assemblymember Donna Lupardo (D), passed in that chamber by a vote of 133-5 back in February.<\/p>\n The purpose of the legislation is to \u201cencourage the use of industrial hemp grown in New York by businesses.\u201d<\/p>\n #NYSenate<\/a> S8496, sponsored by Senator @michellehinchey<\/a>, passed (61-0, unofficial). \u2014 New York State Senate (@NYSenate) May 17, 2022<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n \u201cNew York is a leader in the cultivation and processing of hemp, especially for cannabinoid hemp,\u201d the bill\u2019s justification section says<\/a>. \u201cThe market for New York industrial hemp is still developing and the state needs to take an active role in researching, identifying, and promoting hemp to industries that may incorporate it into their products.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cFor example, as the market for sustainable, biodegradable, non-petroleum-based packaging grows, so do the opportunities for New York produced industrial hemp as an ingredient in these products,\u201d it continues. \u201cThis legislation will encourage renewed focus by the State to work with growers, processors and businesses that are end users to expand market opportunities.\u201d<\/p>\n \u2014 Hinchey\u2019s interest in this area of cannabis policy has been evident this session, as the senator also filed legislation in February that would promote recycling in the marijuana industry<\/a>\u00a0once retail sales officially launch.<\/p>\n The bill would require cannabis shops to apply a $1 deposit for any marijuana products sold in single-use plastic containers and also reimburse consumers for that fee if they return the container.<\/p>\n The senator is also behind a separate bill filed last year that would\u00a0prioritize hemp-based packaging over synthetic plastics<\/a>\u00a0for marijuana products.<\/p>\n The recycling bill is\u00a0identical to an Assembly version filed<\/a>\u00a0by Assemblywoman Patricia Fahy (D) last year.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, another senator filed a bill last week that would legalize what would essentially be licensed community marijuana gardens<\/a> for people who aren\u2019t able to cultivate cannabis at their own homes.<\/p>\n The\u00a0bill from Sen. Jeremy Cooney (D) \u201cwill ensure individuals who do not have a residence that is suitable for personal cultivation, such as most renters and individuals living in urban communities, still have the opportunity to utilize personal cultivation in a safe and controlled setting,\u201d a justification memo attached to the legislation states.<\/p>\n As it stands, adults 21 and older will be able to start growing up to six plants, only three of which could be mature, starting 18 months after the first adult-use retailers launch, which is expected to happen later this year.<\/p>\n Regulators also approved revised rules last month permitting medical cannabis patients to grow their own marijuana. Those proposed regulations are\u00a0under a public comment period<\/a>.<\/p>\n Separately, the mayor of New York City has signaled his interest in having licensed marijuana grows on the rooftops of public housing buildings. But recognizing the potential federal conflict, he said last month that\u00a0the administration intends to seek a \u201cwaiver\u201d<\/a>\u00a0to permit such activity.<\/p>\n In any case, with the state legislative session set to end on June 2, there\u2019s little time left to pass pending cannabis reform proposals that Cooney and others have introduced in recent months.<\/p>\n For example, the senator also filed a bill last month that\u2019s meant to encourage banks\u00a0to work with state-legal marijuana businesses<\/a>\u00a0by allowing regulators to disclose certain information about cannabis licensees to financial institutions.<\/p>\n Separately, Cooney and other New York lawmakers also sought to\u00a0provide tax breaks for the forthcoming marijuana market<\/a>,\u00a0approving a budget proposal that Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) signed<\/a>\u00a0last month that would do just that.<\/p>\n Cooney\u00a0filed a standalone bill in December<\/a>\u00a0seeking a similar carve-out for the state\u2019s burgeoning cannabis industry, and Assemblymember Donna Lupardo (D) followed suit in her chamber.<\/p>\n Regulators have been hard at work getting the industry ready for the launch of retail sales this year.<\/p>\n Earlier this month, the\u00a0CCB approved a second batch of applications<\/a>\u00a0for recreational marijuana cultivators, raising the total to 88 accepted licensees.<\/p>\n Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) signed a bill from Assembly Majority Leader Crystal Peoples-Stokes (D) and Hinchey to create conditional licenses in February. The intent is to allow existing hemp operators to\u00a0get a head start on growing marijuana<\/a>\u00a0to meet demand for the forthcoming industry.<\/p>\n Regulators also advanced a rule in March to make it so people with prior marijuana convictions, or whose family members have been harmed by criminalization, will get the\u00a0first round of adult-use marijuana retailer licenses<\/a>\u2014ahead of existing medical cannabis businesses. A recent poll found that\u00a0most New Yorkers voters are against that proposal<\/a>.<\/p>\n Hochul has repeatedly emphasized her interest in\u00a0efficiently implementing the legalization law<\/a>.<\/p>\n The governor released a State of the State book in January that called for\u00a0the creation of a $200 million public-private fund<\/a>\u00a0to specifically help promote social equity in the state\u2019s burgeoning marijuana market.<\/p>\n That proposal was\u00a0also cited in the governor\u2019s executive budget<\/a>, which was released in January. The budget also estimated that New York stands to generate more than $1.25 billion in marijuana tax revenue over the next six years.<\/p>\n Hochul said that while cannabis business licenses have yet to be approved since legalization was signed into law last year, the market stands to generate billions of dollars, and it\u2019s important to \u201ccreate opportunities for all New Yorkers, particularly those from historically marginalized communities.\u201d<\/p>\n Enacting legislation that expedites licensing could help the state reduce the number of businesses that are effectively using the legal \u201cgifting\u201d provision of the state\u2019s marijuana law to give away cannabis for \u201cfree\u201d if a non-marijuana-related purchase is made.<\/p>\n New York regulators recently\u00a0issued warnings to more than two dozen businesses<\/a>\u00a0that they allege are either illegally selling marijuana without a license or exploiting the \u201cgifting\u201d component.<\/p>\n Separately, the state Department of Labor separately announced in recent guidance that New York employers are no longer allowed to\u00a0drug test most workers for marijuana<\/a>.<\/p>\n Rhode Island Lawmakers Unveil Revised Marijuana Legalization Bill, With Committee Votes Set For This Week<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n Photo courtesy of Pixabay<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n The post New York Bill Encouraging Businesses To Use Hemp For Construction And Other Purposes Heads To Governor<\/a> appeared first on Marijuana Moment<\/a>.<\/p>\n
The New York Senate and Assembly have passed a bill to encourage businesses to use hemp materials for packaging, construction and other industrial purposes. After final procedural steps, the measure will be on its way to the governor. The legislation amends state statute to stipulate that the Agriculture Commissioner wouldContinue Reading<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":458,"featured_media":54783,"comment_status":"false","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[18,81],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54782"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/458"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=54782"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54782\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":54784,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54782\/revisions\/54784"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/54783"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=54782"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=54782"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=54782"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}\n
Relates to industrial hemp development:https:\/\/t.co\/iJ18cyF4Ou<\/a><\/p>\n
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\nRead More: New York Bill Encouraging Businesses To Use Hemp For Construction And Other Purposes Heads To Governor<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"