New Jersey Voters Approve Marijuana Legalization Referendum
New Jersey voters have approved a referendum to legalize marijuana, according to a projection from the Associated Press.
Lawmakers will still have to pass enabling legislation to implement the legal cannabis system now that voters have signed off on the constitutional amendment, but a key senator who previously introduced a legalization bill said recently that he’s been working with the governor’s office and legislative leaders in recent weeks to finalize it. He said a vote could happen as soon as this month.
Sen. Nicholas Scutari (D), who chairs the body’s Judiciary Committee, said the marijuana program that’s ultimately enacted will largely align with his earlier proposal. That said, he wants to add a retroactive provision to end cannabis-related prosecutions for pending cases in the legislation, which he said could be introduced as early as Thursday.
The senator floated the idea of allowing the state’s existing medical marijuana dispensaries to begin selling cannabis to adults within a month of the election as recreational regulations are being developed. However, a top regulator for the medical cannabis system promptly shut that suggestion down, stating that patient access could be jeopardized because some existing dispensaries “literally do not even have the space to accommodate the level of demand that personal-use sales would bring.”
https://www.marijuanamoment.net/new-jersey-voters-approve-marijuana-legalization-referendum/