Senate President Stephen Sweeney, along with Sen. Nicholas Scutari, introduced legislation, S2703, to legalize adult marijuana sales and further expand New Jersey’s medical marijuana program.
The legislation permits those age 21 and older to legally possess and/or purchase up to one ounce of cannabis. It also permits the licensing of 218 retail dispensaries — 120 of which would provide marijuana to adults while 98 would provide marijuana to authorized patients. At present, one half-a-dozen medical dispensaries are operating in the state.
Finally, the Legislature has produced a bill to legalize recreational use of marijuana in New Jersey, a move with solid support from the governor and the public.
Sadly, it is a complete dud, a sloppy piece of work that does almost nothing to repair the damage done by this misguided war on weed, to make amends for the undeniable racial bias of police and courts in the ban's enforcement.
SYNOPSIS
“New Jersey Marijuana Legalization Act”; legalizes possession and personal use of marijuana for persons age 21 and over; creates Division of Marijuana Enforcement and licensing structure.
SYNOPSIS
Legalizes possession and personal use of marijuana for persons age 21 and over; creates Division of Marijuana Enforcement and licensing structure; revises requirements for medical marijuana program.
Recreational marijuana would be legalized and the medical cannabis program would be expanded under new legislation unveiled Friday in New Jersey.
The state is moving toward legalizing the drug under Democratic Gov. Phil Murphy, who while on the campaign trail promised to authorize recreational cannabis, but the Legislature has not moved on the issue beyond hearings and introducing legislation.
Trenton – Senate Judiciary Chairman Nicholas Scutari and Senate President Steve Sweeney introduced two bills Thursday that collectively would legalize the recreational use of marijuana in New Jersey and vastly expand access to medical marijuana.
Recreational marijuana would be legalized and the medical cannabis program would be expanded under new legislation being introduced in New Jersey.
Democratic Senate President Steve Sweeney and state Sen. Nicholas Scutari announced the new bills Friday.
The legislation comes as Democratic Gov. Phil Murphy pushes for legalizing recreational pot as part of a campaign promise. His fiscal year 2019 budget assumes marijuana will be legalized and banks on $60 million in revenues.
Gov. Phil Murphy's administration put state agencies on notice Friday that they should prepare for a government shutdown if a budget isn't signed by the June 30 deadline.
The letter to Murphy's cabinet members, obtained by NJ Advance Media, outlined a shutdown contingency plan. It was sent shortly after top staffers in the Senate and Assembly met with Murphy's senior staff.
The meeting was hostile, according to three sources with knowledge of the event who would only speak on the condition of anonymity. It ended with an exchange of expletives.
The hurdle for legal marijuana in New Jersey seems to keep getting higher.
Gov. Phil Murphy has repeatedly vowed to legalize adult recreational pot use in the Garden State and told state lawmakers he'd like them to pass a bill by January 2019.
But just last week, the Democratic governor for the first time hedged over whether they could hit that deadline. And Democrats who lead the state Legislature are less certain this will get worked out during state budget negotiations in June -- the traditional month for horse-trading in Trenton.
Legalizing weed is something new, and big, and controversial. And the bills are still taking shape. At this stage, it's safer to let the other guy step out of the foxhole first and see if he survives.
"You're not going to jump out and say you're in favor of this when you don't even know what the bill is, and you know you will have people come out against you," says Senate President Steve Sweeney, D-Gloucester. "But you're going to see the momentum shift."