The motivation varies according to legal experts and executives of several cannabis companies.
Michael McQueeny, attorney at Foley Hoag's cannabis practice, honed in on New Jersey.
Municipalities are obligated to decide their cannabis status within 180 days of a legalization bill's enactment, he said, and some fear lawsuits against local police, citing legislation that includes an increased risk of police liability regarding cannabis arrests.
Several New Jersey towns appear open to the idea of growing and manufacturing, McQueeny noted, but not to pot shops and dispensaries. “They are operating under the mistaken belief that if they ban dispensaries, they would decrease police involvement in pot-possession issues.”