New Jersey To Ask Voters In 2020 If Recreational Use Of Marijuana Should Be Legalized
TRENTON, N.J. (CBS/AP) — New Jersey's state Senate president says voters will be asked to decide next year if recreational use of marijuana should be legalized. Steve Sweeney made the announcement Wednesday.
The Democrat also says lawmakers will move forward with related measures that would expand the state's medical marijuana program and expunge the criminal records of people with convictions for possessing pot.
"We will move forward with the expansion of our medical cannabis program as well as the progressive social justice reforms in the expungement legislation. We will not, however, pursue the legalization of adult use marijuana at this time," Sweeney said in a tweet.
We will move forward with the expansion of our medical cannabis program as well as the progressive social justice reforms in the expungement legislation. We will not, however, pursue the legalization of adult use marijuana at this time.
— Steve Sweeney (@SteveSweeney_NJ) May 15, 2019
Legalizing recreational marijuana was a campaign promise of Democratic Gov. Phil Murphy, but he and Sweeney have been unable to muster enough support from fellow Democrats to pass the measure.
A measure to legalize recreational weed for those 21 and over while also allowing marijuana-related convictions to be wiped clean failed to get enough support in March.
(© Copyright 2019 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)