🚨 Sen. Gillibrand calls on NYC’s Mamdani to step up illicit enforcement

THE HIGHRISE
Sen. Gillibrand calls on NYC’s Mamdani to step up illicit market enforcement 🚨

Driving the news: Senator Kirsten Gillibrand praised New York’s enforcement efforts but suggested industry stakeholders could push New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani to prioritize shutting down illicit cannabis sellers in the city in his first 100 days.

Cultivated hosted Sen. Gillibrand for a discussion on New York and broader federal cannabis policy during last week’s inaugural The Highrise event. Watch it back here. 

New York launched its legal cannabis market in December of 2022. The industry initially struggled with lawsuits from multiple license applicants and the proliferation of illicit shops throughout New York City and the rest of the state.

What she’s saying: "A lot of these were first time business owners and so when they were up against an illicit market they just couldn't compete,” Sen. Gillibrand told Cultivated Editor-in-Chief Jeremy Berke.

“They didn't have the same access to capital. They didn't have the same support networks or alignment that a lot of these illicit storefronts had.”

Gillibrand also urged the industry stakeholders that were in attendance to reach out to her about how New York’s cannabis industry is doing now that the city and state have stepped up enforcement.

"I think it's something we should ask Mayor Mamdani to do in his 100 days, like just do something on the law enforcement side to fix this inequity because it's really harming the ability of our stakeholders to survive.”

Zoom out: Mamdani was inaugurated on New Year’s Day, so his first 100 days will last through April 11. So far, he has said little publicly about his plans for the city's cannabis industry, though more than once on the campaign trail he said that he was a supporter of legal cannabis.

The city has already shut down over 1,631 as of last December, according to reports from CBS News.

You can hear more from Sen. Gillibrand here.

"Each year that we go without a marketplace, the illicit market grows, and health and safety concerns rise for our citizens," said Virginia Sen. Lashrecse Aird, D-Petersburg, who sponsored the Senate version of the cannabis market bill.

Lashrecse spoke to the Richmond Times-Dispatch about ongoing efforts to craft the legislative framework allowing for the cannabis market that lawmakers in Virginia approved of in 2021.

LIT ALERTS INSIGHTS*
Launching New York Brand Power Rankings

In an effort to track the 50 leading brands in New York, our partners at Lit Alerts have launched a monthly Brand Power Rankings for Cultivated readers. Below is the initial Brand Power Rankings for January 2026.

To calculate the Brand Power Ranking, Lit Alerts uses a weighted index that balances market dominance with retail health and pricing strategy. The formula integrates estimated unit sales volume and estimated dollar value to assess overall demand, while factoring in share of shelf, distribution points, and the frequency of product discounts.

You will begin to see this feature monthly in our newsletter.

Here’s a look at New York Brand Power Rankings from Lit Alerts for January 2026. 👇

*To learn more about Lit Alerts and get a special offer only available to Cultivated readers, visit litalerts.com.

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