New Jersey Senate President Stephen Sweeney has appointed social worker Krista Nash as the first official member of the state’s Cannabis Regulatory Commission, a panel charged with regulating the state’s cannabis industry, according to an NJ.com report.
The commission still needs four additional members before it can become operational, the news outlet reported; Gov. Phil Murphy must appoint three members and State Assembly Speaker Craig Coughlin must appoint one under New Jersey’s expanded medical cannabis law.
State Senate President Stephen Sweeney has selected Krista Nash, a South Jersey social worker married to Camden County Freeholder Jeff Nash, two sources familiar with the nomination told NJ Cannabis Insider.
The other positions, slated to be filled by Gov. Phil Murphy and state Assembly Speaker Craig Coughlin, remain vacant.
New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy got a high grade in a recent study from advocacy group National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML).
The pro-cannabis nonprofit released its 2020 Gubernatorial Scorecard on Wednesday, which assigns "A" to "F" grades to governors across the U.S. for their comments and voting records on marijuana issues.
This year, NORML gave Murphy a grade of A-minus.
The governor of New Jersey signed a bill into law establishing a streamlined process for expunging criminal records resulting from low-level marijuana violations, as well as other nonviolent offenses.
The marijuana legalization pros and cons have been debated for decades. The recent expansion of New Jersey’s medicinal marijuana program, the roll-out of legal hemp cultivation, and referendum on recreational use for those 21 and older planned for later this year, point to the significant and sustained efforts by lawmakers to address the impact of marijuana convictions through reforms to the expungement laws.
In August, even as attempts to legalize marijuana in New Jersey were sidelined, Gov. Phil Murphy signed legislation allowing the cultivation, processing and distribution of hemp in the state.
Officials say interest among growers has been high in the state. Fisher said applications for licenses to grow and process hemp will be available online, adding that there’s no preset limit to how many will be handed out.
But the Wednesday morning bill-signing in Newark was a cheerful and festive occasion, which Murphy framed as a “historic day for social justice.”
“We are giving New Jersey one of the most progressive expungement laws in the nation, allowing more people to fully participate in our society and our economy,” Murphy said.
Democratic Gov. Phil Murphy signed legislation (A. 5981/S. 4154) into law today facilitating the expungement of low-level marijuana crimes and other offenses.
The measure establishes an expedited process for expunging the criminal records associated with minor marijuana-related violations, among other changes. An analysis of nationwide arrest data published last year reported that New Jersey was third in the nation in total marijuana arrests and second only to Wyoming in per capita marijuana arrests.
Murphy and the governors of several other states in the Northeast have also engaged in a regional dialogue about how to coordinate their cannabis markets after it’s legalized. It’s not clear how New Jersey opting for a referendum process will impact those discussions, however.
Here’s how the marijuana question will appear on the ballot, per the resolution approved by lawmakers:
CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT TO LEGALIZE MARIJUANA
Do you approve amending the Constitution to legalize a controlled form of marijuana called “cannabis”?
100 Days?
It’s been widely reported here and elsewhere that, out on the campaign trail, Phil Murphy promised to legalize cannabis within 100 days of becoming governor of New Jersey.
After eight long years of Chris Christie’s reefer madness it was a message that many in NJ wanted to hear.
Especially me.
However there’s no original source citing Murphy’s pledge to legalize cannabis within 100 days. You’ll find countless reports citing other reports but none contained the alleged money quote from Murphy.