CAURD License Verification

What CAURD Means

CAURD stands for Conditional Adult-Use Retail Dispensary — the first tier of NY adult-use cannabis retail licenses, created under the 2021 Marijuana Regulation and Taxation Act (MRTA) and administered by the New York State Office of Cannabis Management (OCM). The CAURD program was structured as a social-equity priority license, issued first to applicants from communities most harmed by cannabis prohibition. To qualify, an applicant needed a prior cannabis-related conviction (or an immediate family member with one) plus retail business operating experience.

Both Terp Bros NYC licenses were issued in the first CAURD waves. Co-founder Jeremy Rivera is a CAURD social-equity license holder whose path through the program exemplifies the social-equity-first design of the MRTA. Co-founder Al Cottone is an Ozone Park native who grew up in the neighborhood the second Terp Bros store now serves. The combination — first-wave CAURD social-equity license + lifelong Queens roots — is exactly what the NY OCM CAURD program was built to enable. Read the full founders story at the Our Story page.

Why CAURD Legitimacy Matters for Customers

A CAURD license is not paperwork. It is a binding compliance contract that affects every product on the Terp Bros shelf. Specifically, a CAURD-licensed dispensary must:

• Sell only NY State certified-lab-tested product. Every product carries a QR-linked certificate of analysis showing exact THC and CBD content, terpene profile, and tests for pesticides, heavy metals, microbials, and residual solvents under NY OCM Part 113.
• Track every unit through BioTrack. Inventory is tracked from cultivator → distributor → dispensary → register. Diversion to or from unlicensed channels triggers OCM enforcement and license revocation.
• Verify 21+ ID at the door. Every visit, every customer, every time. No exceptions, no workarounds. Required under NY OCM compliance rules.
• Submit to OCM compliance audits. NY OCM enforcement staff visit CAURD locations unannounced to verify ID protocols, inventory chain, product testing, label compliance, and staff training.
• Pay 13% NY adult-use cannabis excise tax. Funds the NY Community Reinvestment Fund, which routes a portion of every dollar back to NY communities most affected by cannabis prohibition.
• Provide OCM-mediated dispute resolution. If a product is defective or mislabeled, OCM provides a regulatory recourse path that does not exist for unlicensed shops.

How to Verify Any NY Dispensary's CAURD License

1. 1. Visit the NY OCM directory at cannabis.ny.gov/conditional-adult-use-retail-dispensary-caurd.
2. 2. Search by license number, business name, or address.
3. 3. Confirm the listing shows Active status and matches the location you are about to visit. License numbers follow the format OCM-CAURD-YY-NNNNNN.
4. 4. Cross-check the license number against the physical placard at the front of the store. NY OCM requires every CAURD location to display its license visibly at the entrance.
5. 5. If a shop has no posted license, no listing in the OCM directory, or a license that does not match the physical placard, it is unlicensed. Do not purchase. Report to OCM at cannabis.ny.gov/file-complaint.

For Terp Bros NYC specifically, the two verifiable licenses are:

• Astoria: OCM-CAURD-23-000020 at 36-10 Ditmars Blvd, Astoria, NY 11105. Verify on NY OCM portal.
• Ozone Park: OCM-CAURD-25-000294 at 135-26 Cross Bay Blvd, Ozone Park, NY 11417. Verify on NY OCM portal.

Terp Bros NYC's CAURD Story

Terp Bros NYC was founded by Al Cottone and Jeremy Rivera with the goal of building a Queens-rooted, social-equity-first cannabis retailer. Jeremy Rivera's path through the NY OCM CAURD social-equity priority program embodies the original intent of the MRTA — license preference for entrepreneurs from communities historically harmed by cannabis prohibition, paired with rigorous operational compliance training. Al Cottone grew up in Ozone Park, which became the home neighborhood for the second Terp Bros location at 135-26 Cross Bay Blvd. The Astoria flagship at 36-10 Ditmars Blvd opened first under license OCM-CAURD-23-000020, in the first CAURD wave. Ozone Park followed under license OCM-CAURD-25-000294.

Both locations operate identical compliance, testing, and training standards. Both display their CAURD license at the front of the store, post the license number on every page of the website (visible in the footer of every page you land on), and include the license number on the exit bag with every purchase. The license posting is not decoration — it is the verifiable trail that distinguishes a NY-legal dispensary from the hundreds of unlicensed sticker shops still operating across NYC. Every dollar spent at Terp Bros routes 13% to the NY Community Reinvestment Fund, specifically targeting NY communities most affected by prohibition.