Chief equity officer of New York Office of Cannabis Management to step down following investigation

New York – Following the end of an inspector general probe into claims he used targeted enforcement to retaliate against licensees who spoke out against the troubled agency, a key official in the New York State Office of Cannabis Management has announced his resignation, effective this fall.

This month, the Inspector General’s investigation into Damian Fagon, the Chief Equity Officer of OCM, came to an end. It was determined that the claims lacked evidence.
On Thursday, Fagon discussed his departure, which will take effect on November 27, with Felicia Reid, the newly appointed Executive Deputy Director and acting Executive Director of OCM.

“I know that Mr. Fagon has done tremendous work leading OCM’s equity efforts, setting up OCM to take the most innovative and equity-driven approach to the development of New York’s cannabis industry,” Reid said in a statement on Friday. “I appreciate all of his time and abilities. I hope all of his future pursuits bring him much success.

Regarding the investigation’s findings and conclusions, the inspector general’s office remained silent.

The IG’s office received three complaints against Fagon, according to the six-page closing activity report of the study. Two of these complaints came from applicants for processor and dispensary licenses in March, while the third complaint was from an OCM employee in June who claimed Fagon had tampered with multiple license applications. The inquiry was started by these accusations as well as a story published by NY Cannabis Insider that initially brought attention to the claims of Fagon’s wrongdoing.

As part of the investigation, the inspector general conducted interviews with multiple OCM employees and examined a large number of records, phone conversations, OCM emails, and other internal correspondence. The investigation included allegations that Fagon was aware that OCM was not upholding state law after learning that licensees were obtaining out-of-state product illegally.

The report states that the inspector general was unable to determine whether or not Fagon’s remarks or conversations violated OCM policy.

The department states that Fagon, who was put on administrative leave at the beginning of the probe in May, will stay on leave until his resignation takes effect. On Friday, the resignation letter was not immediately accessible.

Regarding his resignation date in November, Reid stated, “Until then, Mr. Fagon will be on leave, and will focus solely on transitioning his equity portfolio to OCM leadership.”

After OCM issued its first-ever product recall of Jenny Argie’s product, Jenny’s Zee-Zee Gummies, for label and testing flaws amid reports the department was not following state standards to avoid market disruptions, licensed cannabis processor Jenny Argie filed a retaliation lawsuit against Fagon. Later, because of worries that Argie’s product used an unapproved solvent, OCM conducted an inspection of her plant and issued a partial stop work order.

The inspector general ruled that the retaliation claims were unfounded and that there was no indication of foul play or an ulterior motivation. He also noted that the recall and partial stop work order were appropriate and independent of Fagon.

“OCM was in the process of conducting routine inspections of all processing facilities and Argie’s facility was set to be inspected by the end of the schedule,” the report states.

The applicant for a Conditional Adult-Use Retail Dispensary license, who claimed that Fagon was bothering their approval procedure, declined to speak with the inspector general or give more information to the office.

According to the IG investigation, the director of licensing at OCM refuted claims that Fagon asked for certain applications to be modified or expedited.

In the upcoming days, the Office of Cannabis Management will post a job opening for the chief equity officer position, the agency announced. According to OCM officials, Fagon will help with the changeover.

In June 2022, the Cannabis Control Board granted approval for Fagon, a third-generation farmer, to hold the post. Since the state agency was founded in 2021, he was the only individual to have held the position.