Section 87 - Social and economic equity, minority and women-owned businesses, distressed farmers and service-disabled veterans; incubator program1. The board, in consultation with the chief equity officer and executive director, and after receiving public input shall create and implement a social and economic equity plan and actively promote applicants from communities disproportionately impacted by cannabis prohibition, and promote racial, ethnic, and gender diversity when issuing licenses for adult-use cannabis related activities, including mentoring potential applicants, by prioritizing consideration of applications by applicants who are from communities disproportionately impacted by the enforcement of cannabis prohibition or who qualify as a minority or women-owned business, distressed farmers, or service-disabled veterans. Such qualifications shall be determined by the board, with recommendations from the state cannabis advisory board, the chief equity officer and executive director, by regulation.2. The board's social and economic equity plan shall also promote diversity in commerce, ownership and employment, and opportunities for social and economic equity in the adult-use cannabis industry. A goal shall be established to award fifty percent of adult-use cannabis licenses to social and economic equity applicants and ensure inclusion of: (a) individuals from communities disproportionately impacted by the enforcement of cannabis prohibition;(b) minority-owned businesses;(c) women-owned businesses;(d) minority and women-owned businesses, as defined in paragraph (d) of subdivision five of this section;(e) distressed farmers, as defined in subdivision five of this section; and(f) service-disabled veterans.3. The social and economic equity plan shall require the consideration of additional criteria in its licensing determinations. Under the social and economic equity plan, extra priority shall be given to applications that demonstrate that an applicant:(a) is a member of a community disproportionately impacted by the enforcement of cannabis prohibition;(b) has an income lower than eighty percent of the median income of the county in which the applicant resides; and(c) was convicted of a marihuana-related offense prior to the effective date of this chapter, or had a parent, guardian, child, spouse, or dependent, or was a dependent of an individual who, prior to the effective date of this chapter, was convicted of a marihuana-related offense.4. The board in consultation with the cannabis advisory board and the chief equity officer, shall also create an incubator program to encourage social and economic equity applicants to apply and, if granted an adult-use cannabis license, permit or registration, the program shall provide direct support in the form of counseling services, education, small business coaching and financial planning, and compliance assistance.5. For the purposes of this section, the following definitions shall apply: (a) "Minority-owned business" shall mean a business enterprise, including a sole proprietorship, partnership, limited liability company or corporation that is: (i) at least fifty-one percent owned by one or more minority group members;(ii) an enterprise in which such minority ownership is real, substantial and continuing;(iii) an enterprise in which such minority ownership has and exercises the authority to control independently the day-to-day business decisions of the enterprise;(iv) an enterprise authorized to do business in this state and independently owned and operated; and(v) an enterprise that is a small business.(b)"Minority group member" shall mean a United States citizen or permanent resident noncitizen who is and can demonstrate membership in one of the following groups:(i) black persons having origins in any of the black African racial groups;(ii) Hispanic persons of Mexican, Puerto Rican, Dominican, Cuban, Central or South American of either Indian or Hispanic origin, regardless of race;(iii) Native American or Alaskan native persons having origins in any of the original peoples of North America; or(iv) Asian and Pacific Islander persons having origins in any of the far east countries, south east Asia, the Indian subcontinent or the Pacific islands.(c) "Women-owned business" shall mean a business enterprise, including a sole proprietorship, partnership, limited liability company or corporation that is: (i) at least fifty-one percent owned by one or more United States citizens or permanent resident noncitizens who are women;(ii) an enterprise in which the ownership interest of such women is real, substantial and continuing;(iii) an enterprise in which such women ownership has and exercises the authority to control independently the day-to-day business decisions of the enterprise;(iv) an enterprise authorized to do business in this state and independently owned and operated; and(v) an enterprise that is a small business.(d) A firm owned by a minority group member who is also a woman may be defined as a minority-owned business, a women-owned business, or both.(e) "Distressed farmer" shall mean: (i) a New York state resident or business enterprise, including a sole proprietorship, partnership, limited liability company or corporation, that meets the small farm classification developed by the Economic Research Service of the United States Department of Agriculture, has filed a schedule F with farm receipts for the last three years, qualifies for an agriculture assessment and meets other qualifications defined in regulation by the board to demonstrate that they operate a farm operation as defined in section three hundred one of the agriculture and markets law and has been disproportionately impacted, including but not limited to incurring operating losses, by low commodity prices and faces the loss of farmland through development or suburban sprawl and meets any other qualifications as defined in regulation by board; or (ii) a New York state resident or business enterprise, including a sole proprietorship, partnership, limited liability company or corporation, that is a small farm operator and a member of a group that has been historically underrepresented in farm ownership and meets any other qualifications as defined in regulation by board.(f) "Service-disabled veterans" shall mean persons qualified under article three of the veterans' services law.(g) "Communities disproportionately impacted" shall mean, but not be limited to, a history of arrests, convictions, and other law enforcement practices in a certain geographic area, such as, but not limited to, precincts, zip codes, neighborhoods, and political subdivisions, reflecting a disparate enforcement of cannabis prohibition during a certain time period, when compared to the rest of the state. The board shall, with recommendations from the state cannabis advisory board, the chief equity officer and executive director, issue guidelines to determine how to assess which communities have been disproportionately impacted and how to assess if someone is a member of a community disproportionately impacted.6. The board shall actively promote applicants that foster racial, ethnic, and gender diversity in their workforce.7. Licenses issued under the social and economic equity plan shall not be transferred or sold within the first three years of issue, except to a qualified social and economic equity applicant and with the prior written approval of the board. In the event a social and economic equity applicant seeks to transfer or sell their license at any point after issue and the transferee is to a person or entity that does not qualify as a social and economic equity applicant, the transfer agreement shall require the new license holder to pay to the board any outstanding amount owed by the transferor to the board as repayment of any loan issued by the board as well as any other fee or assessment as determined by the board.Amended by New York Laws 2022 , ch. 669, Sec. 10, eff. 12/9/2022.Amended by New York Laws 2022 , ch. 56, Sec. PP-29, eff. 4/1/2023.Added by New York Laws 2021 , ch. 92, Sec. 2, eff. 3/31/2021.