* § 496-c. Illicit cannabis penalty. (a) In addition to any other
civil or criminal penalties that may apply, any person knowingly in
possession of or knowingly having control over illicit cannabis, as
defined in section four hundred ninety-two of this article, after notice
and an opportunity for a hearing, shall be liable for a civil penalty of
not less than two hundred dollars per ounce of illicit cannabis flower,
five dollars per milligram of the total weight of any illicit cannabis
edible product, fifty dollars per gram of the total weight of any
product containing illicit cannabis concentrate, and five hundred
dollars per illicit cannabis plant, but not to exceed four hundred
dollars per ounce of illicit cannabis flower, ten dollars per milligram
of the total weight of any illicit cannabis edible product, one hundred
dollars per gram of the total weight of any product containing illicit
cannabis concentrate, and one thousand dollars per illicit cannabis
plant for a first violation, and for a second and subsequent violation
within three years following a prior violation shall be liable for a
civil penalty of not less than four hundred dollars per ounce of illicit
cannabis flower, ten dollars per milligram of the total weight of any
illicit cannabis edible product, one hundred dollars per gram of the
total weight of any product containing illicit cannabis concentrate, and
one thousand dollars per illicit cannabis plant, but not to exceed five
hundred dollars per ounce of illicit cannabis flower, twenty dollars per
milligram of the total weight of any illicit cannabis edible product,
two hundred dollars per gram of the total weight of any product
containing illicit cannabis concentrate, and two thousand dollars per
illicit cannabis plant.
(b) No enforcement action taken under this section shall be construed
to limit any other criminal or civil liability of anyone in possession
of illicit cannabis.
(c) The penalty imposed by this section shall not apply to persons
lawfully in possession of less than two ounces of adult-use cannabis or
ten grams of concentrated cannabis in accordance with the cannabis law
or penal law.
* NB Effective April 1, 2022