Current through Register Vol. 46, No. 39, September 25, 2024
(a) Duty to Report
Licensees have an ongoing duty to report changes or amendments to their
operations to the Office as required by the Office and these regulations.
(1) Licensees have a continuing duty to
provide the Office with up-to-date contact information and shall notify the
Office in writing of any amendments or changes to the mailing addresses, phone
numbers, electronic mail addresses, and other contact information they provide
the Office.
(b)
Notification to the Office:
(1) A licensee
shall notify the Office within ten (10) business days of becoming aware of or
within ten (10) business days of when the licensee should have been aware of
any of the following:
(i) where the licensee
is a privately held entity:
(a) whenever an
existing or new shareholder holds at least 10% aggregate ownership interest,
notwithstanding subdivision (d) of this section, requiring Office approval of
shareholders who are not passive investors or their spouse;
(b) when a person, other than a shareholder,
ceases to be a true party of interest;
(c) when a person changes their aggregate
ownership interest to be less than 10%;
(d) when a person lends greater than 10% of a
licensee's capital;
(e) upon
entering into a contract, term sheet, agreement, or side letter between the
applicant, licensee, or its true parties of interest, and a goods and services
provider, other than those exempted pursuant to paragraph (1) of subdivision
(a) of section
124.3 of this Title, or non-exempt
agreements pursuant to paragraph (1) of subdivision (b) of section
124.3 for a flat fee; and
(f) upon the death or removal of a disclosed
true party of interest from the license.
(2) A licensee shall notify the Office within
three (3) business days of becoming aware of or within three (3) business days
of when the licensee should have been aware of any of the following:
(i) criminal convictions, or civil judgments
in an amount greater than five thousand dollars ($5,000) against the licensee
or its true parties of interest, other than passive investors, in New York
State or any other state, federal, or foreign jurisdiction;
(ii) disciplinary action taken against the
licensee or its true parties of interest, other than passive investors, by this
state or any other state, federal, or foreign jurisdiction, including any
pending action;
(iii) the
initiation or conclusion of any new judgments, lawsuits, legal proceedings,
charges, or government investigations, whether initiated, pending, or
concluded, that involve the applicant or its true parties of interest;
(iv) any amendments or changes to
the cannabis business operations that are required in regulation and law;
and
(v) any proposed material
amendments or changes to the cannabis business. Material amendments or changes
include, but are not limited to, the following:
(a) amendment or change in processing
extraction method(s);
(b) amendment
or change in an entity name or doing business as name; any amended or changed
name shall comply with all requirements pursuant to Part 128 of this Title;
and
(c) a change in the ability to
control at least 50% of the voting shares of a licensee.
(3) Failure to provide
notifications or reports to the Office pursuant to this section may result in
fines and/or suspension, cancellation or revocation of a license.
(c) Request for Office approval:
(1) The following changes require Office
approval:
(i) any time a new true party of
interest is added to the entity, not including a passive investor or their
spouse; or
(ii) changes requiring
background checks of the altered parties, which includes any time a new true
party of interest is added to the entity, not including a passive investor and
their spouse.
(2)
Licensees seeking to make a change pursuant to this subdivision, shall submit
an application to the Office at least sixty (60) days prior to the proposed
date of the amendment or change. Such application shall be accompanied by a fee
as determined by the Board. In determining whether to approve such application,
the Office may set terms or conditions under which it may allow the continued
operation of the license.
(d) Notification and Request for Board
approval:
(1) The following changes requires
notification to the Board and prior approval:
(i) change the composition of a licensee,
including, but not limited to, a transfer in ownership, structure or
control;
(ii) the ability to
control at least 50% of the voting shares of a licensee; or
(iii) amendment or change to the cannabis
business address or a change in the location of a licensee's licensed
activities.
(2) Failure
to provide notifications to the Board pursuant to this section may result in
fines and/or suspension, cancellation, or revocation of a license.
(e) If the licensed premises is
damaged by a fire, flood or other natural disaster, or other situations of
local, state, or national emergency, or by a security breach, the licensee
shall notify the Office within a period of twenty-four (24) hours, and the
Office shall have the authority to quarantine all cannabis or cannabis products
for analysis and, if appropriate, disposal, if found unfit for use.
(f) Removing a true party of interest from a
License. Upon a request to remove a party from a license, such request shall be
accompanied by the following:
(1) a notarized
letter, signed by both the licensee and the party to be removed, acknowledging
the change, and explicitly detailing that the party is aware of the effects of
that change;
(2) a corporate
resolution of the licensee authorizing the licensee to change the ownership of
the licensee pursuant to and consistent with articles of incorporation, LLC
agreement, operating agreement, bylaws, partnership agreement, or similar
governing document and the laws of the state of formation of the licensee, and
an affidavit, of a member of the licensee's board of directors or similar
governing body, a managing member, general partner, or sole member, as may be
applicable, attesting that the undersigned is authorized to act on behalf of
the licensee and that the submission of the change of ownership application
based on the corporate resolution constitutes a valid corporate action, or such
other evidence reasonably satisfactory to the Office; or
(3) a determination by a court of competent
jurisdiction or a decision by an arbiter, agreed upon by both
parties.