On Monday, committees in both the state Senate and Assembly are scheduled to hold hearings on legislation to establish a regulatory framework for the new industry, covering matters such as taxes and licensing. Introduced Friday by Sen. Nick Scutari (D) and Senate President Stephen Sweeney (D), the 216-page bill provides the first detailed look at how New Jersey’s marijuana market might operate.
Some of the key provisions: Adults 21 and older could purchase and possess up to an ounce of marijuana or five grams of concentrated cannabis. Retail stores would be allowed statewide, but local jurisdictions could ban them. Delivery services could operate statewide regardless of local bans. Retailers could allow on-site consumption as long as they have local approval.
But unlike most other legal states, home cultivation wouldn’t be allowed under the bill, titled the “Cannabis Regulatory, Enforcement Assistance, and Marketplace Modernization Act.”
A Senate committee on Monday will also consider two separate bills to decriminalize cannabis possession in the short term.
Under the legalization plan, until newly licensed businesses are up and running—which is expected to take a year or more—existing medical marijuana dispensaries would be able to sell to adult consumers.
“We are at the goal line,” Scutari told NJ.com on Friday. Lawmakers hope the legislation and its Assembly counterpart will pass the full Legislature by November 16.