STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
10140
IN ASSEMBLY
February 8, 2026
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Introduced by M. of A. ZINERMAN, PEOPLES-STOKES, STIRPE, ALVAREZ -- (at
request of the Office of Cannabis Management) -- read once and
referred to the Committee on Economic Development
AN ACT to amend the cannabis law, in relation to the location of adult-
use retail dispensaries near schools and houses of worship; and to
repeal certain provisions of such law relating thereto
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Subdivision 6 of section 72 of the cannabis law is REPEALED
2 and a new subdivision 6 is added to read as follows:
3 6. (a) No premises with a license issued pursuant to this section, or
4 section sixty-eight-a of this article, or section seventy-three of this
5 article that allows for the retail sale of adult-use cannabis, shall be
6 located on the same street and within five hundred feet of a building
7 containing a school.
8 (b) No premises with a license issued pursuant to this section, or
9 section sixty-eight-a of this article, or section seventy-three of this
10 article that allows for the retail sale of adult-use cannabis, shall be
11 located on the same street and within two hundred feet of a building
12 exclusively occupied as a house of worship.
13 (c) The measurements in paragraphs (a) and (b) of this subdivision are
14 to be taken in straight lines from the center of the nearest entrance of
15 the premises sought to be licensed to the center of the nearest entrance
16 of such school or house of worship.
17 (d) For purposes of this subdivision: (i) The word "entrance" shall
18 mean: (A) a door of a school regularly used to give ingress to students
19 of the school; (B) a door of a house of worship regularly used to give
20 ingress to the general public attending the house of worship; or (C) a
21 door of the premises sought to be licensed regularly used to give
22 ingress to customers of such premises.
23 (ii) A door which has no exterior hardware, or which is used solely as
24 an emergency or fire exit, or for maintenance or delivery purposes, or
25 which leads directly to a part of a building not regularly used by
26 students of the school, the general public attending the house of
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD14812-01-6
A. 10140 2
1 worship, or customers of the premises sought to be licensed, is not
2 deemed an "entrance".
3 (iii) If the school, house of worship or premises sought to be
4 licensed is set back from a public thoroughfare, the walkway or stairs
5 leading to any such door shall be deemed an entrance; and the measure-
6 ment shall be taken to the center of the walkway or stairs at the point
7 where it meets the building line or public thoroughfare.
8 (e)(i) For purposes of paragraph (b) of this subdivision, a building
9 occupied as a house of worship does not cease to be "exclusively" occu-
10 pied as such by incidental uses that are not of a nature to detract from
11 the predominant character of the building as a house of worship.
12 (ii) Such uses include, but are not limited to: (A) the conduct of
13 legally authorized games of bingo or other games of chance held as a
14 means of raising funds for the not-for-profit religious organization
15 which conducts services at the house of worship or for other not-for-
16 profit organizations or groups; (B) use of the building for fund-raising
17 performances by or benefitting the not-for-profit religious organization
18 which conducts services at the house of worship or other not-for-profit
19 organizations or groups; (C) the use of the building by other religious
20 organizations or groups for religious services or other purposes; (D)
21 the conduct of social activities by or for the benefit of the congre-
22 gants of the house of worship; (E) the use of the building for meetings
23 held by organizations or groups providing bereavement counseling to
24 persons having suffered the loss of a loved one, or providing advice or
25 support for conditions or diseases including, but not limited to, alco-
26 holism, drug addiction, cancer, cerebral palsy, Parkinson's disease, or
27 Alzheimer's disease; (F) the use of the building for blood drives,
28 health screenings, health information meetings, yoga classes, exercise
29 classes or other activities intended to promote the health of the
30 congregants or other persons; and (G) use of the building by non-congre-
31 gant members of the community for private social functions.
32 (iii) The building occupied as a house of worship does not cease to be
33 "exclusively" occupied as such where the not-for-profit religious organ-
34 ization occupying the house of worship accepts the payment of funds to
35 defray costs related to another party's use of the building.
36 (f) No renewal of a license shall be denied because of the
37 restrictions in paragraphs (a) or (b) of this subdivision.
38 (g) When evaluating an application for compliance with this subdivi-
39 sion, the proximity of the premises sought to be licensed to a school or
40 house of worship shall be determined based on the date such applicant
41 submits its location to the office.
42 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately; provided that any license
43 issued pursuant to section 68-a of the cannabis law, section 72 of the
44 cannabis law, or a license issued pursuant to section 73 of the cannabis
45 law that allows for the retail sale of adult use cannabis, issued prior
46 to such effective date shall be deemed in compliance with the provisions
47 of subdivision 6 of section 72 of the cannabis law as added by this act;
48 and further provided that any application for a license issued pursuant
49 to section 68-a of the cannabis law, section 72 of the cannabis law, or
50 a license issued pursuant to section 73 of the cannabis law that allows
51 for the retail sale of adult use cannabis, where such applicant was
52 advised in writing by the office of cannabis management prior to such
53 effective date that its location complied with the proximity standards
54 with respect to schools and houses of worship, shall be subject to and
55 reviewed for compliance with respect to proximity to schools and houses
56 of worship using the procedures of the office of cannabis management
A. 10140 3
1 utilized prior to July 28, 2025, and all other applications of such
2 licenses shall be subject to and reviewed for compliance under the
3 provisions of subdivision 6 of section 72 of the cannabis law as added
4 by this act.
