Proposed Assembly Bills 1897 and 4269 would decriminalize certain amounts of cannabis possession, while scaling back penalties for what would still be arrestable and convictable offenses.
The measures, which were introduced at the Assembly Community Development and Affairs Committee on Monday, passed by a 63-10 vote with five abstentions at the Assembly’s remotely held hearing, and with no discussion among any members. A Senate version was introduced on March 16 to the Senate Judiciary Committee, but has not gone anywhere since.
The passage comes months ahead of a ballot question set for November’s 2020 presidential election, where voters will decide whether recreational marijuana should be legalized for adult-use.
Thursday’s bill ultimately falls short of a much more far-reaching proposal in the upper house, Senate Bill 2535, introduced on June 4 and referred to the Senate Judiciary Committee.