A key New Jersey Senate committee approved a bill on Monday to implement marijuana regulations following voter approval of an adult-use legalization referendum last week. And members of an Assembly panel are currently debating a companion proposal, with a vote expected soon.
The Senate Judiciary Committee and Assembly Oversight, Reform and Federal Relations Committee discussed the legislation, which was introduced on Friday. The Senate panel approved the bill in a 5-1 vote, with several abstentions, after debate over provisions concerning social equity, home cultivation and tax revenue allocation for law enforcement purposes.
Members of the Senate panel also took up and merged two bills to decriminalize cannabis in the short term. That passed as well. Meanwhile, the leader of the chamber is calling on the state attorney general to issue a directive to end prosecutions for low-level marijuana offenses.
Sen. Nicholas Scutari (D), chair of his Senate panel and sponsor of the legalization bill, called the drug war a “miserable failure” that has has a disparate impact on communities of color. He also argued that regulating cannabis would help quash the illicit market, generate needed tax revenue and free up law enforcement resources.
Under his bill—the Cannabis Regulatory, Enforcement Assistance and Marketplace Modernization Act—adults 21 and older would be allowed to purchase and possess up to an ounce of marijuana or five grams of concentrates. Retailers wouldn’t launch right away, but as the licensing system is set up, medical cannabis dispensaries would be able to sell marijuana products to adult consumers.