New York Officials Approve Marijuana Home Grow Rules And New Business Licenses Amid ‘Rocky Start’ For Legal Market [Video]

New York regulators have approved draft rules to allow for the home cultivation of recreational marijuana, and have signed off on more than 100 new cannabis business licenses that they hope will help the legal market overcome its “rocky start” this year.

Amid sharp criticism from the governor and state lawmakers over the protracted licensing process, the Cannabis Control Board (CCB) on Friday voted in favor of several resolutions to expand marijuana operations and lay out proposed home grow rules for adult consumers.

Regulators approved over 100 licenses for retailers, microbusinesses, cultivators, processors and distributors. Two cannabis research licenses were also granted under a separate resolution.

What makes this latest batch of licensing approvals unique is that they are the first non-conditional licenses, meaning applicants did not need to meet certain eligibility criteria under the state’s Conditional Adult-Use Retail Dispensaries (CAURD) program that prioritized justice-involved people.

“This moment has been …