Hours after the state Department of Health unveiled a plan to grow New Jersey’s strained medical marijuana program, the Senate president bashed the move, furthering a feud that’s seeping into everything in Trenton.
Stephen Sweeney, the top lawmaker in the state, said Gov. Phil Murphy is undermining efforts to expand the medical marijuana program through the Legislature. A bill to do that is just a vote in the Assembly from landing on the governor’s desk for a signature, but Murphy has not said he’d endorse the plan.
“Once again, the governor is ignoring the hard work of the Legislature and the agreement between the Senate, the Assembly and the administration on this issue," Sweeney, D-Gloucester, said in a statement. “The legislation that is in the process of being approved by both houses is a direct reflection of that agreement – and now the governor wants to preempt what is a thoughtful plan to expand medical marijuana in an effective and responsible way.”