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Towns and cities that chose to opt out are free to opt in at any time, by amending an existing ordinance or passing a new one. Municipalities that chose to permit cannabis operations in town, though, would need to wait 5 years before dropping out of the industry. Towns are not permitted to opt out of delivery.
"Several municipalities which opted out to preserve their options are now evaluating those regulations and the development of the market to determine their next best steps," said Michael Cerra, executive director of the New Jersey State League of Municipalities.
The state’s Cannabis Regulatory Commission (CRC) will begin accepting applications for recreational cannabis businesses beginning on Dec. 15.
At today’s New Jersey State League of Municipalities Conference in Atlantic City, the chair and executive director of the CRC discussed application and licensing rules and processes, including the types of businesses that will initially receive priority review of applications.
Roughly half the cities and towns in New Jersey are likely to prohibit adult-use cannabis businesses for at least the foreseeable future, given their impending hard deadline of Aug. 21 to decide whether to opt in or opt out of the industry.
According to the Gothamist, localities that choose to ban the marijuana industry might “reverse course at any time” while those that choose to permit cannabis companies will be forced to accept their existence for at least five years before they’re allowed to change their minds.
The Borough Council adopted an ordinance by a 4-1 vote to prohibit the operation of any class of cannabis businesses within the borough at its July 27 meeting. Councilman Roger Freda did not support the ordinance.
Cities and towns have the ultimate say over whether marijuana businesses are allowed locally, and many are already blocking them, at least temporarily. A related debate is percolating over how much more say the state Cannabis Regulatory Commission should yield to local governments.
Janice Kovach, the mayor of Clinton Town and president of the New Jersey State League of Municipalities, said the league doesn’t have a position on legalization – but that towns must have local control and discretion and the ability to set stricter rules than the state.
The Village Council will discuss if and how it might regulate cannabis at its meeting on Wednesday night. In the November 2020 elections, 59.87 percent of Ridgewood residents voted in favor of Ballot Question 1, which set in motion the legalization of marijuana use for those over 21. But details still need to be hammered out by the State’s Cannabis Regulatory Commission regarding the sale and distribution of cannabis.
Mayor Susan Knudsen could not be reached for comment at press time on the issue, which is on the agenda for the Council’s Work Session.
But an outright local ban wouldn't necessarily come easy. Here's why:
A nonprofit marijuana policy group is distributing a survey to hundreds of New Jersey mayors in an effort to identify local concerns and challenges of regulating cannabis sales as the state works to implement legalization.
The Cannabis Advisory Group (CAG) announced the questionnaire on Wednesday, just two days before a voter-approved referendum to legalize marijuana for adult use is set to become enacted as a constitutional amendment.
This section authorizes municipalities to adopt ordinances imposing a “transfer tax” on cannabis sales on licensed cannabis establishments (see definition in Section 3, page 4, lines 13-16).
Municipalities may enact a local tax up to:
The bill to legalize marijuana could get a full vote on Dec. 17, though sponsors were uncertain whether it had enough support to pass. Before Gov. Phil Murphy can fulfill his pledge to sign a legalization bill, it must be approved by the 40-member state Senate and 80-member state Assembly.
Political squabbles over state tax rates on new marijuana businesses have dominated the debate this year, along with debates over social justice issues such as expungement of criminal records for past low-level possession convictions.
