Key official behind slow rollout of legal weed shops exits NY Cannabis Control Board

Reuben McDaniel, who leads a state agency that is instrumental in setting up New York’s legal cannabis industry, announced on Thursday that he’s stepping down from his position on the state’s Cannabis Control Board.

He made the announcement at the end of a tense board meeting on Thursday — in which cannabis growers criticized state officials for the industry’s slow rollout. The departure was first reported on Wednesday night by The City.

McDaniel will retain his position as president and CEO of the New York State Dormitory Authority, the agency that has been tasked with securing real estate for legal cannabis retail shops and setting up a social equity fund to make loans to the first retail licensees. New York’s first legal shops are run by people or family members of people whose lives were affected by marijuana prohibition.

The Cannabis Association of New York, which represents entrepreneurs in the legal industry, has described McDaniel’s dual positions — head of the Dormitory Authority and Cannabis Control Board member — as a conflict of interest. Gov. Kathy Hochul appointed McDaniel to the board in September 2021. He joined the Dormitory Authority two years earlier during the Cuomo administration.

“I am proud to have played a role in building a new industry,” McDaniel said without citing a reason for why he was stepping down.

McDaniel’s leadership at the Dormitory Authority has also received criticism amid the cannabis industry rollout because the agency is yet to fulfill its pledge to secure outside investors for the state’s social equity fund and has put up reams of red tape for those seeking to open legal retail shops. Some cannabis license holders said they have had potential dispensary locations rejected for being too close to other proposed shops, and have even had to compete with the Dormitory Authority itself for eligible retail space.

Since the legal retail industry launched in December, only 13 licensed dispensaries have opened statewide, including delivery-only operations and temporary pop-up shops. That’s despite the state issuing more than 200 licenses.

“I want to thank the New York citizens who have really stood behind the cannabis industry, those of you who have put your blood, sweat and tears into this,” McDaniel said at Tuesday’s meeting. “It will be a wonderful day when we get all of this right.”

Carson Grant, who has a license to open a dispensary in Queens, publicly criticized the Dormitory Authority at a recent meeting between state officials and licensees. He told Gothamist on Thursday that he’s glad McDaniel is stepping down from the Cannabis Control Board because he “always thought it was a conflict of interest.” But Grant added that he is not confident in how McDaniel is running the Dormitory Authority.

“The state should have a deadline for performance,” Grant said. “Just like anybody in any job, if you don't perform in your job, you get replaced or fired, right? The question is: has he performed?”

In a statement on the departure, Jason Gough, a spokesperson for Hochul, said, “We are grateful for Reuben McDaniel’s service on the Cannabis Control Board and are reviewing candidates for the upcoming vacancy on the Board.”

Gothamist has contacted the state Office of Cannabis Management for comment.