Spectrum News reports that while New York officials expect to open retail sales of cannabis before the end of the year, in the Hudson Valley a court fight has prevented awarding marijuana dispensary licenses. Last week New York issued its first 36 licenses for dispensaries, but none in the Hudson Valley yet, as U.S. District Court Judge Gary Sharpe in Albany has at least temporarily blocked the state from issuing licenses in some parts of New York after a company owned by a Michigan resident challenged a requirement that applicants demonstrate “a significant presence in New York state.” New York officials are now asking the judge to loosen that injunction as a cannabis harvest worth an estimated $1.5 billion is waiting to be distributed to retailers. “If the farmers, who were already issued cultivating licenses, have nowhere to sell their crop, they will lose the millions of dollars that have been collectively invested in their businesses, some may lose their businesses, and they will otherwise be forced into the predicament of either watching their crops rot and expire or selling them on the illicit market,” Assistant Attorney General Amanda Kuryluk wrote to the court. Christian Kernkamp, a lawyer representing the company suing New York, said in an emailed statement that the company hoped to resolve the case. “The injunction could be over tomorrow, but the State prefers instead to litigate even though the court has already found a ‘clear likelihood’ that the State violated Variscite’s constitutional rights,” Kernkamp said. Read more about this story at Spectrum News.