NJ legalizes weed
Gov. Murphy on February 22 signed into law three bills that decriminalize and legalize marijuana for "adult use," a term that generally refers to any use of the drug without a medical marijuana card.
source https://www.app.com/story/news/local/new-jersey/marijuana/2021/02/22/nj-weed-legal-gov-phil-murphy-law-marijuana-sales-2021/4544939001/
Can I smoke weed now?
Under bill A1987, the use or possession of up to 6 ounces of marijuana is decriminalized and comes without any penalties. There are also restrictions on how police officers can stop and search anyone who may be using or consuming marijuana.
Yet there remains a gray area.
You still cannot legally purchase marijuana in New Jersey without a medical marijuana card, and it'll likely be at least months before any recreational marijuana sales begin.
When will I be able to purchase legal recreational weed?
Dispensaries that sell exclusively to recreational customers won't be legal until after the state's Cannabis Regulatory Commission is formally established, meets and sets specific guidelines for the cannabis industry — such as hours and security requirements for such sellers.
Only then will the CRC begin accepting applications for recreational dispensaries and other cannabis businesses.
So you're unlikely to be able to walk into a recreational marijuana dispensary in New Jersey for at least a year.
However, much depends on the future of medical marijuana in New Jersey.
Right now, there are over 100,000 patients in the New Jersey Medical Marijuana Program, but just 13 dispensaries from 10 operators to serve them.
There's a hope that the supply will soon grow after a recent appellate decision lifting a court order preventing the Department of Health from issuing licenses to new medical marijuana cultivation centers and dispensaries.
[Some people will take the train to Boston where it is legal and bring back to NJ. Just don’t get caught in NY, CT or RI on the train, and don’t have more than 6 ounces.]
Can I grow marijuana at home?
No. The bills Murphy signed do not include any provisions allowing people to grow marijuana at home.
New Jersey is the only state with legal weed that doesn't allow at least its medical marijuana patients to grow, and joins Washington as the only states without some recreational home grow.
Over 67% of voters backed a marijuana ballot question in November. But that ballot question's specific constitutional amendment was contingent on two things: passage of the ballot question and regulations put forth by the state.
Those regulations were signed into law February 22, putting the ballot question and constitutional amendment into effect.
Lawmakers finally ended a six-week stalemate over how the state will penalize underage marijuana users, sending Murphy a “clean-up” bill designed to complement the pair already passed by the Legislature in December.
The draft bills left open a major contradiction, with one stating that possessing marijuana under 21 years old was illegal while the other stated that no person — without age restriction — could face penalty for possession of up to 6 ounces of marijuana.
The resulting compromise, which passed the Legislature on February 22 put into place a three-tiered warning system for both underage marijuana and alcohol use.
Both will be treated as virtually the same crime, with the most serious penalty capped at a simple referral to community service groups to teach the offender about substance abuse.
All civil penalties and fines, even from underage drinking citations, were removed. Source Asbury Park Press
