Buffalo, N.Y. (WBEN) - In an effort to crackdown on illegal cannabis shops and all vape, hookah and smoke shops operating without licenses, the Buffalo Common Council approved ordinances on Tuesday requiring all smoke shops to have a permit obtained through the city.
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"What we did today was just tie up any loose ends with a lot of those shops," said Councilman Chris Scanlon.
"Each district in the city is seeing ... some shops opening up and operating without licenses, distributing cannabis illegally, things like that. So we just wanted to make sure, especially with the legislation coming from the state, and the Office of Cannabis Management and licensees, which will be issued soon, that we're all on the same page."
This means all smoke shops operating in the City of Buffalo will not only have to obtain a state tobacco license or operating dispensary license from the Office of Cannabis Management, but a city license via the Department of Permit and Inspection Services (DPIS), at a cost of $200 and be subjected to an annual inspection by the DPIS.
According to Scanlon, it's not just about the illegal cannabis "sticker shops" that are opening up illegally. A lot of tobacco sellers are operating without licenses from the state.
"We're seeing the illegal smoke shops opening up. But obviously, we're anticipating licenses being issued by the Office of Cannabis Management very soon. We've had meetings with them very recently. And we just want to make sure that our legislation mirrors theirs so we can do whatever we have to do to make sure everyone's in compliance and not contributing negatively to any neighborhoods here in the City of Buffalo."
Those who have licenses from the state operating in Buffalo have a 12-month window to obtain a license from the city.
According to the ordinances, any smoke shop that fails to be adequately licensed by both the City of Buffalo and New York State could be subjected to fines up to $1,500 per violation.
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