Speaker 2: Ari Hofnog, Vireo Health Ari Hofnog joins us as our first guest operating in New York. He takes us through. We're the medical program is in regards to license holders, patients and physicians. He discusses his unique history and how his background became the foreground for his participation in legal cannabis in New York, but first Nael Domina of Manna molecular joins. Just to take us through what's happening in New England from an operator's perspective is reporting suggests that the polling and Massachusetts is simply way too close for comfort. Welcome to cannabis economy. I'm your host Seth Adler. Check us out on social with the handle can economy. That's two ends of the word economy. If you're into more direct communication, feel free to send an email and [email protected]. Ari known from New York, proceeded by denial demeanor from New England. Enjoy.
Speaker 1: All right, so, uh, nial demeanor. I think of you as nial demeanor from a man and molecular. But, uh, but it's not called a minute, isn't it?
Speaker 3: Uh, no, it, it is. Now that you said it right the second time,
Speaker 1: the second time, which should be the first time and that's what it will be here too, for uh, thanks for giving us a few minutes. You're up there in Maine and you're an operator and you know, what's going on in New England. And so we wanted to kind of check in with you, um, and, and, and hear what was happening. So, you know, as far as Maine is concerned and legalization, uh, you know, where are we? Let's jump in there. We'll, we'll go around the horn and then find out about what's going on with man. How about that?
Speaker 3: Sure. Um, so the main legally legalization initiative initially had, they had a signature drive get on the ballot, they hit the number of signatures that were required and then the state throughout many of the insurers which brought them below the threshold, but then in court they appealed and got a lot of the signatures back on which allows them to get back on the ballot and time for November. So what we're looking at is a November eight ballot initiatives to initiate a marijuana legalization. And free our creational marijuana market or cannabis market with a 10 percent retail sales tax and if I percent a state sales tax and the first 30 million in tax revenue would be used for school and the first 30 would be allocated to a general fund and it would be handled by the Maine Department of Administrative and Financial Services Bureau of the alcoholic beverages moderately operation. So it's going to be regulated like alcohol and lottery.
Speaker 3: Um, and I think it's a good step for a Maine. Maine's a very progressive state. It's not doing well economically, are not doing as well as it could. I would say that I was born in. So there's a big disparity between, you know, the southern Maine and the rest of the state as far as income distribution and culture. And so I think a legalization would help a lot of those kind of ailing a former manufacturing facilities, paper mills, etc. You know, those municipalities generate some kind of revenue so that they can, uh, you know, repair their schools, uh, you know, and have municipal services increased. So I think it's a good thing for the state of Maine and I sincerelY hope it passes. I have a few friends that are working dispensary's there as cultivators and I know the caregiver market there is very lively and uh, I think for those reasons that this will be a boon to that market.
Speaker 1: Excellent.
Speaker 3: uh, I think it's pulling in favor. I think it's something like 55 and favor. So I think it has a good shot at passing, but I know that the opener, a page, uh, I think he's against it. Yeah. And so, you know, you have kind of a similar story, Massachusetts where you have a political leadership, a more conservative staunchly against it. Um, and you know that this is a reason why it's going on the ballot initiative, you know, that the people are kind of seeing the lack of progress and want to override the decisions that these politically, uh, you know, authoritative figures have. And I think that's appropriate given the circumstance in may and I believe it will pass just like I will believe it'll pass in Massachusetts.
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