Email Template

Dear Supervisor _______,

I’m writing to you as a constituent to urge that you do not support or sign into law, any resolution that aim’s to “opt-out” of physical retail cannabis stores and lounges, or otherwise impede legal access to cannabis for consumers. These laws are counterproductive to protecting public health in our community, and can actually cause more harm to our communities than they wish to prevent.

The new Cannabis Law (“CL”), CL Article 6 Section 131 specifies that local municipalities can request that the Office of Cannabis Management (“OCM”) let them “opt-out” of and effectively bar business from operating within their jurisdiction that are specifically licensed under CL Article 4 Sections 72, 73 & 77.

While cannabis has been illegal for the past century, that has not stopped over 600,000 Long Islanders from consuming cannabis regularly. Similarly, opting-out stands to have little effect on teen and adult use, as seen in states like Colorado and Washington, where these measures have been tried. Contrary to how the media may portray consumers, we care just as much about the health, safety, and well-being of our communities as you do.

The cannabis industry has been, and always will be present in our communities, opting out will continue to force these businesses to operate without regulatory scrutiny or without any local tax collection. Businesses that apply for a License in New York will be required to take a number of actions to keep their license, including checking ID with every sale, keeping strict inventory controls in place, minimum operating requirements for security including guards and surveillance, plus more to be determined by the OCM.

Once again, I want to reiterate that the MRTA did not legalize any nefarious activity that isn’t already occurring. Underground businesses have been supplying hundreds of thousands of consumers on Long Island with high-quality and affordable cannabis for over 50 years. Most communities have multiple people to whom one can go for their specific needs, however, none of these businesses will be paying taxes, ID’ing children, or reinvesting profits in the community unless we stay opted-in.

Once again, I urge that you do not support or sign into law, any resolution that aim’s to “opt-out” of physical retail cannabis stores and lounges.

From,
[Your Name, Zipcode]

Phone Script

Hi, Name name is ______ I live in _________, I’m a NORML member and I wanted to leave a message for the supervisor.

I would ask that the Supervisor not support or sign into law, any resolution that aim’s to “opt-out” of physical retail cannabis stores and lounges, or otherwise impede legal access to cannabis for consumers.

The MRTA did not legalize any activity that isn’t already happening in our backyards. Underground businesses have been supplying Long Island with high-quality and affordable cannabis for over 50 years. Most communities already have multiple sources and existing underground/legacy cannabis enterprises,, however, none of these businesses will be paying taxes, ID’ing children, or reinvesting profits in the community unless we stay opted-in.

The cannabis industry has been, and always will be in our communities, opting-out will continue to force these businesses to operate without regulatory scrutiny or without any local tax collection. Businesses that apply for a License in New York will be required to take a number of actions to keep their license, including checking ID with every sale, keeping strict inventory controls in place, minimum operating requirements for security including guards and surveillance, plus more to be determined by the Office of Cannabis Management.

Again, I want to urge the Supervisor to not Opt-Out. Thank you for taking my call.