Earlier this month I spoke in Schenectady, New York, at the Cannabusiness Education Hub (CBE), a group that promotes the state’s recently legalized cannabis industry.
The October 3 event was the first of its kind in New York, and marks the culmination of planning and implementation of programming since New York State approved the Marihuana Regulation and Taxation Act (MRTA) in March 2021.
The gathering drew attendees who were interested in obtaining higher education qualifications suitable for careers in cannabis, as well as entrepreneurs who are concerned about staffing their businesses with credentialed employees. For many attendees, this was their first inquiry into the job market in the New York cannabis industry.
The CBE event signals that many more businesses will open in the next 12-24 months in the New York cannabis industry, including in Westchester County.
CBE consists of four partner community colleges in upstate New York: Columbia-Greene Community College, Fulton-Montgomery Community College, SUNY Adirondack Community College, and SUNY Schenectady Community College.
The group covers a 17-County service area in the Capital Region that will work with cannabis entrepreneurs to establish a pipeline of talent for the state’s new cannabis industry through training opportunities in cultivation, processing, manufacture, distribution and sales of both medical marijuana and adult use cannabis products.
I spoke on the topic of Ancillary Businesses Supporting the Cannabis Community, with emphasis on the many opportunities available to those individuals who wish to work in the cannabis industry as book keepers, accountants, lawyers, marketing professionals, real estate brokers, cyber security, health industries, and banking.
I emphasized that just about any job held in a traditional business exists in the cannabis industry, though additional training in the law and regulation of state-licensed cannabis is necessary. Thus, if someone wishes to be a cannabis real estate professional, it is necessary to know real estate as well as the requirements for zoning and site selection for a cannabis business.
In addition to serving as adjunct professor at Elisabeth Haub School of Law, I am a cannabis tax attorney and co-founder of the New York Consortium of Cannabis Accountants (NYCCA). Earlier in the day at the CBE event, NYCCA co-founder and Nyack resident Allison Kirchhofer, CPA, spoke on the challenges of banking in the cannabis industry. Kirchhofer is an in-house accountant with Union Square Travel Agency, the second licensed adult cannabis dispensary to open in New York State. Other topics presented at the CBE included seed-to-sale tracking in cultivation, and building culinary businesses in the cannabis industry.
The New York State Office of Cannabis Management opened its portal for applications for cultivation, manufacturing, processing, microbusiness, and retail dispensary licenses on October 4, 2023, with this round of applications due no later than December 4, 2023.
Anyone interested in obtaining a license in Westchester County should contact the state Office of Cannabis Management at 1-888-626-5151, or info@ocm.ny.gov.
Paula Collins is Professor of Cannabis Law and Policy at Elisabeth Haub School of Law at Pace University in White Plains.
