Municipal Notification
Pursuant to Section 76 of the Cannabis Law, not less than thirty days nor more than two hundred seventy days before filing an application for licensure as an adult-use retail dispensary or registered organization adult-use cultivator processor distributor retail dispensary or an on-site consumption licensee, an applicant shall notify the municipality in which the premises is located of such applicant's intent to file such an application.
Applicants for a microbusiness authorized to conduct retail sales of cannabis products to consumers must also complete this notification in the same manner as an applicant for an adult-use retail dispensary license.
This notification has to be made by:
- certified mail, return receipt requested;
- overnight delivery service with proof of mailing; or
- personal service upon the offices of the clerk or community board
Request Permission To Bring And Maintain A Civil Proceeding
If you are a county attorney, corporation counsel, or local government seeking permission from the Office of Cannabis Management to bring and maintain a civil proceeding against an unlicensed cannabis business, or other unlicensed business location, that sells (directly or indirectly) cannabis, cannabis products, medical cannabis or cannabinoid hemp or hemp extract products within New York, you must submit a Civil Proceeding Request Form pursuant to Cannabis Law Section 16-a:
The information is necessary for the Office of Cannabis Management to review your request to bring a civil proceeding.
Please Note: This form is only available for use by an official representative of a Local Municipal Government.
Local Municipal Opt-Out and Opt-Out Repeal Form
Pursuant to the Cannabis Law, cities, towns, and villages, which had previously passed a local law seeking to prohibit adult-use cannabis retail dispensaries and/or on-site consumption businesses, may repeal that local law, allowing for the possibility to host these licensees in their municipality. To do this, a municipality must pass a new local law repealing the opt-out law which established the prohibition.
Please click on the Opt-Out button below to fill out a form submitting the new local law from your municipality repealing the previous law seeking to opt-out of one or both types of sales. If you are a local government that has passed a law repealing a previous law seeking to opt-out, this information is required to be submitted to the Office of Cannabis Management (OCM) for the repeal to be recognized.
Additionally, if you are a municipality that approved a local law opting-out of one or both types of sales prior to the December 31, 2021, and have not submitted your opt-out law to the OCM portal, please do so immediately. The submission of your law is required by the Cannabis Law and will enablethe OCM and the Cannabis Control Board recognize your opt-out status.
If a municipality did not pass a local law seeking to opt-out of one or both types of sales before the December 31, 2021 deadline, then they do not need to take action.
Please Note: This form is only available for use by an official representative of a Local Municipal Government.
A copy of the local law is required as part of the submission.
Local Opt-out
Cities, towns, and villages can opt-out of allowing adult-use cannabis retail dispensaries or on-site consumption licenses from locating within their jurisdictions. Municipalities cannot opt-out of adult-use legalization. Adult-use cannabis possession and use by adults 21 years of age or older in accordance with the Marijuana Regulation & Taxation Act (MRTA), is legal in New York State.
To opt-out of allowing adult-use cannabis retail dispensaries or on-site consumption licenses, a municipality must pass a local law by December 31, 2021 or nine months after the effective date of the legislation. This means that if a municipality has already passed a local law or measure prohibiting adult-use cannabis licenses from operating in its jurisdiction, the municipality will have to pass a new local law conforming to the opt-out requirements outlined in the MRTA.
If a municipality does not opt-out by December 31, 2021, the municipality will be unable to opt-out at a future date. However, a municipality may reverse their opt-out, to allow either, or both, adult-use retail dispensary or on-site consumption license types by repealing the local law which established the prohibition.
All local laws passed by municipalities opting out of allowing adult-use retail dispensaries or on-site consumption licenses are subject to a permissive referendum as outlined in section twenty-four of the Municipal Home Rule Law.
This creates a process allowing voters of the municipality to petition the outcome of a local law, which if successful, will trigger the question of whether or not to approve the local law, to be placed on the ballot at the next general election of state or local government officials for the municipality.
The data below is based on information submitted by localities with the Office of Cannabis Management through a web-based portal.
The list will be updated periodically to reflect localities that had opted out prior to the deadline but had not submitted their opt-out law previously or localities opting-in.
Last Updated 03/28/2024
Local Control and Preemption
Except for the opt-out provision described in the section above, all municipalities including counties, are preempted from adopting any law, rule, ordinance, regulation, or prohibition pertaining to the operation or licensure of adult-use, medical or cannabinoid hemp licenses.
However, towns, cities and villages are permitted to pass local laws and regulations governing the time, place and manner of adult-use retail dispensaries and on-site consumption licenses provided that the local law and regulations do not make the operation of the license unreasonably impracticable as determined by the Cannabis Control Board. For example, cities, towns, and villages are permitted to pass laws and regulations pertaining to local zoning and the location of licensees, hours of operations and adherence to local building codes. Municipalities may not issue local licenses to cannabis licensees.
Taxes
There is a local excise tax imposed on the sale of cannabis products from a retail dispensary to a cannabis consumer at 4 percent of the products price. This tax is distributed to local governments based on where the retail dispensary is located. 25 percent of the tax revenue goes to the county and 75 percent goes to the cities, town, or villages within the county as a proportion of cannabis sales. If a town and a village within the town both allow adult-use sales, the revenue shall be distributed based on agreed upon distribution agreement between the town and village. If no such agreement exists, then the revenue distribution between the town and village will be divided evenly.
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Local Governments: Fact Sheet
Find key provisions from the Marijuana Regulation & Taxation Act (MRTA) which impact local governments and local officials.
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