New York’s Office of Cannabis Management (OCM) has launched a pioneering community reinvestment scheme, amounting to $5 million, financed by cannabis tax revenue.
Specifically tailored to assist with mental health, workforce development, and housing aid, it is particularly aimed at the youth.
In a determined move to channel state cannabis tax funds back into regions historically impacted by harsh federal and state drug laws, this initiative highlights a strategic use of the resources gathered from licensed cannabis dispensaries. The goal remains to redress long-standing community needs.
The OCM’s economic development director, Tabatha Robison, clarified that “Each dollar used in a lawful store aids in the crucial task of reinvestment in communities affected by prohibition.”
Funding Community Projects via Marijuana Tax Income
Currently, the OCM is actively soliciting proposals from qualified non-profit organizations, with each grant amount set at $100,000. The office is focusing its efforts on high-need counties for youth services, historically underfunded and over-policed, in the 2024 grant cycle.
Furthermore, the OCM has an objective to award “at least one grant in each Empire State Development (ESD) Region.” This plan aligns with the state’s strategy of utilizing marijuana tax funds for the betterment of future generations.
Joe Belluck, Cabinet Member of the state’s Cannabis Advisory Board, stated that youth “make an excellent starting point,” but future years will broaden the scope of community reinvestment issues. Funds will be allocated to the grant recipients over two years through an upfront payment and consequent quarterly “reimbursement-based vouchering”.
This latest series of reinvestments follows New York Gov. Kathy Hochul (D)’s jubilant acknowledgement of a record-breaking over half a billion dollars in legal marijuana sales since commercial retailers were sanctioned in late 2022.
State legislation designates that 40 percent of all marijuana tax funds are to be reinvested in the community, primarily in regions historically disadvantaged and over-policed. Already, this legislative action has accrued approximately $370 million in purchases this year.
The allocation of these funds is managed through the state’s Restore, Reinvest, Renew (R3) Program, which requires 25 percent of cannabis tax income to assist regions hardest hit by the “disproportional damage inflicted by the war on drugs.” With focus on New York cannabis community reinvestment and marijuana tax revenue grants, the program represents a significant step in cannabis regulation and sales within the state of New York.
