As the New Jersey Legislature closed shop for summer recess, thoughts of what could have been on the marijuana legalization effort that stalled flitted among legislators and lawyers.
Why the weed bill failed this year was baffling. Many considered it a slam dunk in a state with a Democratic-controlled Legislature and a Democratic governor who not only supported the measure but made legalizing adult use of marijuana a centerpiece of his gubernatorial campaign in 2017.
In hindsight, some believe that the closeness of the vote tally in the Senate—at least 18 or 19 legislators were publicly on board of the needed 21 votes for passage—means it was only a matter of “when” and not “if” adult use of marijuana would become legal.
However, according to several key lawmakers, it now remains the expectation that the issue will be resolved in a 2020 ballot question—the same route that gambling in Atlantic City, and more recently, sports betting at casinos and racetracks, took.
“The only way is going to be the referendum,” Senate President Stephen Sweeney told the Law Journal in late June, the day the Legislature approved a $38.8 billion state budget, 10 days ahead of the July 1 deadline to avert a government shutdown.
Marty Judge, co-chairman of the cannabis group at Flaster Greenberg in Cherry Hill, summarized the weed bill’s fade to black in the Legislature.
“It was a combination of political things and misplaced chess pieces by both supporters and opponents,” he said. “Gov. Murphy ran on a ticket that he supported the legalization of recreational use cannabis. He was overwhelmingly elected and he viewed it as a mandate from the people.”