The first official store could open in Manhattan in the coming days.
A criminal record to be authorized to legally sell cannabis? New York State legalizes the lucrative marijuana market, granting the first 150 licenses to traders with past convictions for possessing or selling cannabis. After Colorado, ten years ago – and twenty other American states since – the objective is to inflate public finances thanks to new taxes, while repairing the impact of decades of prohibition – including the criminalization targeted African American and Hispanic communities.
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In 2018, a report estimated the illegal cannabis market at between $1.7 billion and $3.5 billion per year in New York State alone, which would represent $248 million to $677 million in potential annual taxes. In New York City alone, the town hall is counting on 1.3 billion dollars in sales from 2023 and 19,000 to 24,000 job creations in three years. The first official store could open in Manhattan in the coming days.
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It will be managed by the Housing Works association, which helps people with HIV or AIDS, former prisoners and the homeless. The state has built the first marijuana shops itself, which will be provided on a turnkey basis to sellers. They will simply have to pay the rent for the premises. And prove themselves in an already competitive market. In addition to vendors on the street, in parks or on social networks, “Smoke Shops” offer joints and THC candy taking advantage of the lack of controls.