CAURD, New York's Conditional Adult-Use Retail Dispensary license, created the route that opened the state's first legal cannabis storefronts, reserved for justice-involved applicants with qualifying business experience and for qualifying nonprofits. On October 14, 2026, the state's license data listed 36 CAURD dispensaries as operating in Queens, alongside 42 operating stores with a standard adult-use license. Purple Buds holds a standard license, not a CAURD license.
Who CAURD was built for
The program put a specific group of people at the front of the line. Per the Office of Cannabis Management's CAURD page, applicants had to be "owned and controlled by a justice involved person who owned at least ten percent (10%) of and controlled a qualifying business for two (2) years, unless eligible under the qualifying nonprofit criteria."
In plain terms, three conditions had to line up:
- A conviction. The owner met OCM's justice-involvement criteria through a qualifying marijuana-related conviction in New York State, their own or one involving a qualifying relationship, before March 31, 2021.
- Business experience. The owner had run a business that was profitable for at least two years.
- Control. All justice-involved owners together had to own at least 51% of the applicant, per OCM's rules.
A separate route existed for qualifying nonprofits. The idea was that the people most affected by enforcement should be first to profit from legalization.
From the first licenses to today
The program's path was not smooth. The key dates, from state sources:
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| November 21, 2022 | The Cannabis Control Board issued the first 36 adult-use retail licenses. |
| December 29, 2022 | Housing Works Cannabis Co at 750 Broadway in Manhattan made the state's first legal adult-use sale, as the first CAURD licensee to open. |
| August 7, 2023 | A state court order stopped OCM from processing or issuing CAURD licenses. |
| December 1, 2023 | The court lifted the CAURD injunction, and openings resumed. |
| August 6, 2026 | OCM reported 360 CAURD licenses issued statewide. |
The law behind the program also set a broader target. Section 87 of the state Cannabis Law says "A goal shall be established to award fifty percent of adult-use cannabis licenses to social and economic equity applicants." In August 2026, per OCM, 56% of all adult-use licenses statewide had gone to social and economic equity applicants, which puts the state above that goal.
The picture in Queens right now
New York publishes its license records as open data, which makes it possible to count stores by borough. We ran that count on October 14, 2026, looking only at records the state marks as operational:
| License type | Operational |
|---|---|
| CAURD (conditional adult-use retail) | 36 |
| Standard adult-use retail dispensary | 42 |
| Total | 78 |
Per that count, CAURD stores make up close to half of the operational dispensaries in Queens. The data also lists 17 of the borough's CAURD licenses as non-operational. That status could mean a store has not opened yet or has closed, and the dataset does not say which, so we do not read more into it.
Where Purple Buds fits
Purple Buds is not a CAURD dispensary, and we want to be clear about that. State records show our license, OCM-RETL-25-000449, as a standard Adult-Use Retail Dispensary License issued on November 20, 2025, and our Roosevelt Avenue store opened to the public on March 3, 2026. The same records list Purple Buds, Inc. in the minority-owned and women-owned business categories of the state's social and economic equity program.
We opened into a borough where equity licensees had already built much of the legal market. Our story covers who we are, and our Jackson Heights store page covers where to find us.
Questions about CAURD and equity licensing
What does CAURD stand for?
Conditional Adult-Use Retail Dispensary. OCM describes CAURD licensees as "the first retail dispensaries to open for legal adult-use cannabis sales in New York State."
Is every dispensary in Queens a CAURD store?
No. On October 14, 2026, standard adult-use licenses slightly outnumbered CAURD licenses among the borough's stores marked operational, 42 to 36, per the state's open license data.
How can I tell whether a store is licensed at all?
Check the state's dispensary verification list before you buy. If you cannot find a shop on the list, check its license status with OCM before buying. Our post on New York cannabis rules in 2026 explains what licensed stores are required to do, and our Queens dispensary page covers the neighborhoods we serve.