State Senate President Stephen Sweeney has targeted Nov. 26 for a committee vote on legislation to legalize adult-use cannabis, expand the medical marijuana program and provide social justice.
“We’ll have [a bill] out of both committees by the end of the month,” Sweeney told reporters at the League of Municipalities conference in Atlantic City on Nov. 14. “There’s a medical bill. There’s an adult-use bill. And there’s a separate social justice piece that Sen. [Sandra] Cunningham is doing. We want to do all of them together.”
“We certainly have the votes to get it out of committee,”Assembly Speaker Craig Coughlin said during a conference panel of legislative leaders. “We believe we will have the votes when it comes to the floor.”
Sweeney also put the onus of passage on Governor Phil Murphy.
“I need the governor’s help with some votes, so far he hasn’t come up with any, ” Sweeney said, “and the only way something like this gets passed legislatively is with all three branches pushing together. The speaker and I worked very hard to come up with a bill. There are still some things the governor doesn’t agree on.