N.Y.
Cannabis Law Section 72
Adult-use retail dispensary license
1.
A retail dispensary license shall authorize the acquisition, possession, sale and delivery of cannabis from the licensed premises of the retail dispensary by such licensee to cannabis consumers.2.
No person may have a direct or indirect financial or controlling interest in more than three adult-use retail dispensary licenses issued pursuant to this chapter.3.
No person holding a retail dispensary license may also hold an adult-use cultivation, processor, microbusiness, cooperative or distributor license pursuant to this article or be registered as a registered organization pursuant to article three of this chapter, except for such organizations licensed pursuant to sections sixty-eight-a and sixty-eight-b of this article.4.
No retail license shall be granted for any premises, unless the applicant shall be the owner thereof, or shall be able to demonstrate possession of the premises within thirty days of final approval of the license through a lease, management agreement or other agreement giving the applicant control over the premises, in writing, for a term not less than the license period.5.
With the exception of delivery or microbusiness licensees, no premises shall be licensed to sell cannabis products, unless said premises shall be located in a store, the principal entrance to which shall be from the street level and located on a public thoroughfare in premises which may be occupied, operated or conducted for business, trade or industry.6.
(a) No premises with a license issued pursuant to this section, or § 68-A (Registered organization adult-use cultivator processor distributor retail dispensary license)section sixty-eight-a of this article, or § 73 (Microbusiness license)section seventy-three of this article that allows for the retail sale of adult-use cannabis, shall be located on the same street and within five hundred feet of a building containing a school.(b)
No premises with a license issued pursuant to this section, or § 68-A (Registered organization adult-use cultivator processor distributor retail dispensary license)section sixty-eight-a of this article, or § 73 (Microbusiness license)section seventy-three of this article that allows for the retail sale of adult-use cannabis, shall be located on the same street and within two hundred feet of a building exclusively occupied as a house of worship.(c)
The measurements in paragraphs (a) and (b) of this subdivision are to be taken in straight lines from the center of the nearest entrance of the premises sought to be licensed to the center of the nearest entrance of such school or house of worship.(d)
For purposes of this subdivision:(i)
The word “entrance” shall mean: (A) a door of a school regularly used to give ingress to students of the school; (B) a door of a house of worship regularly used to give ingress to the general public attending the house of worship; or (C) a door of the premises sought to be licensed regularly used to give ingress to customers of such premises.(ii)
A door which has no exterior hardware, or which is used solely as an emergency or fire exit, or for maintenance or delivery purposes, or which leads directly to a part of a building not regularly used by students of the school, the general public attending the house of worship, or customers of the premises sought to be licensed, is not deemed an “entrance”.(iii)
If the school, house of worship or premises sought to be licensed is set back from a public thoroughfare, the walkway or stairs leading to any such door shall be deemed an entrance; and the measurement shall be taken to the center of the walkway or stairs at the point where it meets the building line or public thoroughfare.(e)
(i) For purposes of paragraph (b) of this subdivision, a building occupied as a house of worship does not cease to be “exclusively” occupied as such by incidental uses that are not of a nature to detract from the predominant character of the building as a house of worship.(ii)
Such uses include, but are not limited to: (A) the conduct of legally authorized games of bingo or other games of chance held as a means of raising funds for the not-for-profit religious organization which conducts services at the house of worship or for other not-for-profit organizations or groups; (B) use of the building for fund-raising performances by or benefitting the not-for-profit religious organization which conducts services at the house of worship or other not-for-profit organizations or groups; (C) the use of the building by other religious organizations or groups for religious services or other purposes; (D) the conduct of social activities by or for the benefit of the congregants of the house of worship; (E) the use of the building for meetings held by organizations or groups providing bereavement counseling to persons having suffered the loss of a loved one, or providing advice or support for conditions or diseases including, but not limited to, alcoholism, drug addiction, cancer, cerebral palsy, Parkinson’s disease, or Alzheimer’s disease; (F) the use of the building for blood drives, health screenings, health information meetings, yoga classes, exercise classes or other activities intended to promote the health of the congregants or other persons; and (G) use of the building by non-congregant members of the community for private social functions.(iii)
The building occupied as a house of worship does not cease to be “exclusively” occupied as such where the not-for-profit religious organization occupying the house of worship accepts the payment of funds to defray costs related to another party’s use of the building.(f)
No renewal of a license shall be denied because of the restrictions in paragraphs (a) or (b) of this subdivision.(g)
When evaluating an application for compliance with this subdivision, the proximity of the premises sought to be licensed to a school or house of worship shall be determined based on the date such applicant submits its location to the office.
Source:
Section 72 — Adult-use retail dispensary license, https://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/laws/CAN/72 (updated Feb. 13, 2026; accessed Feb. 28, 2026).
