N.J. lawmakers pass legal weed bill in historic vote. It now goes to Murphy.

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Years after they began efforts to legalize marijuana for New Jersey adults, lawmakers on Thursday passed a historic bill that establishes rules and regulations for legal cannabis sales and makes the Garden State the first in the region to overhaul its pot laws.

The state Assembly voted 49-24 with six abstentions to pass the bill (S21), and the Senate followed later Thursday, passing it 23-17.

The bill now goes to Gov. Phil Murphy’s desk, who must sign the measure for it to become law.

“I feel that nothing will have a greater impact that I’ve done in my career in the Legislature on all New Jerseyans,” said Sen. Nicholas Scutari, D-Union, the bill’s sponsor, said before the vote.

“It’s been a long journey,” he said.

It was the will of the people — who voted 2:1 in November to amend the state constitution and make weed legal — that ultimately pushed straggling lawmakers to say yes.

Scutari and Senate President Stephen Sweeney, D-Gloucester, decided last fall to end the legislative effort to legalize marijuana after failing multiple times to garner enough votes and instead put the issue to the voters.

But the passage of the ballot question put lawmakers back to work to outline the rules and regulations for the industry — this time with a directive to pass a bill that focuses on social and racial justice.

“This bill to legalize cannabis is a strong commitment to social justice,” said Assemblywoman Annette Quijano, D-Union, who sponsored the Assembly’s version of the bill. “This bill establishes measures to make the cannabis business diverse and equitable.”

Tensions in the Senate rose ahead of the vote, as Sen. Ron Rice, D-Essex, criticized the bill and Scutari for what he sees as inadequate provisions for social justice.

“Where have you been for all these years?” Scutari fired back. “You should be ashamed of yourself. You haven’t done a thing for your community.”

Sweeney intervened, and threatened to mute senators for calling each other out during the virtual voting session.

Sen. Nia Gill, D-Essex, said she would support the bill, but that she thought the social justice provisions proved its “weakest part,” noting they were absent in the initial bill until the legislative Black Caucus and other advocates demanded them.

“Sen. Scutari, you cannot take a bow on the stage,” she said.

The bill currently directs 70% of the state sales tax revenue from marijuana purchases and an excise tax on marijuana growers to certain minority communities disproportionately impacted by the drug war. But some worry the language is not strong enough to guarantee the funds go to such community programs, and wanted the bill to outline a clear path for those with previous marijuana convictions to enter the legal industry.

“The New Jersey Legislature has delivered the most progressive legislation in the nation regarding marijuana legalization, incorporating critical components of social justice and social equity that communities of color and others have been demanding for years,” Assemblyman Jamel Holley, D-Union, who also sponsored the legislation, said in a statement. “This is a defining moment in the history of our state, as we finally put an end to a failed ‘War on Drugs’ that has shattered the lives of many, forced into lengthy, senseless incarceration.”

In addition to passing the 240-page landmark legislation, lawmakers voted to end arrests for possessing less than six ounces of marijuana or selling up to an ounce (S2535) and to lessen penalties for those caught with psilocybin, or “magic” mushrooms (S3256).

The Assembly voted on the decriminalization bill 64 to 12, with three abstentions. The Senate voted 31-2 on the measure.

The Senate also narrowly passed the psilocybin bill, which changes possession of an ounce from a third degree crime to a disorderly persons offense, punishable by a maximum of six months in jail and $1,000 in fines, by a vote of 22-15 with two abstentions. The Assembly passed that bill 51-22 with six abstentions.

The Senate also passed a third cannabis bill (S2875), which allows investors, including the current medical marijuana operators, to fund new marijuana licenses set aside for minorities, women and disabled veterans. The Assembly has yet to hear that measure in committee.

Legislators were under pressure to act quickly following the election, as the constitutional amendment takes effect Jan. 1. Without a law to stop possession arrests or steer the legal industry, some worried the illegal market would operate freely, and that arrests would continue but face a myriad of court challenges.

Even if Murphy signs the bill quickly, work remains. He and Assembly Speaker Craig Coughlin, D-Middlesex, must still name appointees to the Cannabis Regulatory Commission. That panel will oversee the licensing process of new marijuana businesses, from growers to dispensaries.

Some estimate it could take at least a year before the commission establishes rules, awards licenses and dispensaries open to the public.

“We’re all recognizing the historic nature of this moment,” said Amol Sinha, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of New Jersey. “For years now, the better part of a decade, we have been advocating for legislation that would legalize cannabis and help repair the harms of the war on drugs. We are finally at a place where we can see the finish line.”

“While the bill is not perfect, it’s a creature of compromise,” he said.

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Amanda Hoover may be reached at ahoover@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @amandahoovernj.

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