With any luck, the Garden State will getting a whole lot greener in 2019. This week, New Jersey lawmakers are set to discuss a bill that would legalize recreational marijuana use as early as January. At a public hearing on Monday, November 26th, the State assembly and senate committees will debate the legislation, which would legalize the possession of one ounce of marijuana for adults 21 years or older, and hear from constituents before taking a legislative vote.
A total of three separate cannabis bills were approved at the hearing: one to fully legalize marijuana, one to expand the state’s existing medical cannabis program and another that would create a system to speed up expungements for people who’ve been convicted for low-level marijuana offenses.
Legislation that would legalize adult use marijuana in New Jersey gained the approval of a Senate committee today. Sponsored by Senator Nicholas Scutari and Senate President Steve Sweeney, the bill, S2703, would legalize the possession and use of limited amounts of marijuana for adults 21 and older and create an organizational and regulatory system to oversee the operations of the business.
"This will stimulate the economy of New Jersey like nothing ever has before," S2703 sponsor Sen. Nicholas Scutari, D-22nd District, said prior to voting. “We’re on the precipice of a historic event here, starting something and creating jobs like no other legislature has done before. We have that opportunity."
The measure still has to go before a floor vote in both chambers, after which Gov. Phil Murphy would have to sign the bill.
The State Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee and the Assembly Appropriations Committee approved an adult-use cannabis bill Monday after a standing-room-only hearing that lasted nearly five hours and featured a back-and-forth between pro- and anti-marijuana testimony.
The New Jersey Cannabis Regulatory and Expungement Aid Modernization Act (S2703) passed on a 7-4 vote with two abstentions by the Senate committee and 7-2 vote with one abstention by the Assembly committee.
This is starting now. Roll Call.
I will update along below new info will be posted with time stamps. If you want to chime in I'll share some nuggets on Twitter but I invite everyone to login here and post your comments below. I will work to answer any questions you guys have.
Here's a link to listen along - https://www.njleg.state.nj.us/media/mp.asp?M=A/ENCODER-4&S=2018L
Discussing Senate Bill 2703 and Assembly ammendments
Submitted by bluntboy on Mon, 11/26/2018 - 11:03
The measure has been debated privately in the Democrat-controlled state Legislature for years, but never stood a chance of becoming a reality under former Gov. Chris Christie, a Republican who stood in staunch opposition.
But with a change in leadership 10-months ago in Gov. Phil Murphy, a Democrat who campaigned on legalizing cannabis, lawmakers are finally set to put the process in motion.
Senate Bill 2703, better known as the “New Jersey Cannabis Regulatory and Expungement Aid Modernization Act”, would legalize the possession and personal use of an ounce or less of marijuana by adults 21 years of age and older. It would also create a regulatory system and impose a 12 percent commercial tax and an additional 2 percent excise tax for towns hosting cannabis businesses.
After months of delay and backroom disputes, state lawmakers are expected to finally begin voting next week on legalizing marijuana for adults over age 21 in New Jersey.
And it's getting the fast-track treatment, even though legislative leaders and Gov. Phil Murphy remain at odds over details of the legislation.
Separate state Assembly and Senate committees will meet together for a hearing of debate and are expected to vote on the legalization bill on Monday, Nov. 26 at 10 a.m., according to sources familiar with the plan.
A draft of legislation submitted to Gov. Phil Murphy last week held taxes on recreational sales at 12 percent, which would make New Jersey‘s tax rate one of the lowest among states with a legal cannabis program, according to three sources with knowledge of the most recent draft. Local governments would be able to impose a separate excise tax on sales of up to 2 percent.
Earlier this year, administration officials said they’d like to see recreational marijuana taxed at around 25 percent — a rate legislative leaders said would allow the drug’s underground market to thrive.