The New Jersey Senate will not vote on a bill to legalize marijuana today after it became clear the upper house could not get the 21 votes needed to pass the measure. This puts an end, for now, to Gov. Phil Murphy’s top legislative initiative. “While this legislation is not advancing today, I remain committed to its passage,” said Senate President Steve Sweeney. “The Senate was very close to 21 votes and, with more education and advocacy, I believe we will get this legislation across the finish line.” The State Assembly had the votes to pass the enabling legislation today, but Assembly Speaker Craig Coughlin would not post the measure for a vote until the Senate had their votes intact. “While we are all disappointed that we did not secure enough votes to ensure legislative approval of the adult use cannabis bill today, we made substantial progress on a plan that would make significant changes in social policy,” Sweeney said. “This fight is not over. We need to learn from this experience and continue to move forward.” Sweeney praised Murphy’s handling of the failed bill. “Governor Murphy has shown real leadership in driving this issue,” Sweeney said. “He worked with Speaker Coughlin, with me and with the bill’s sponsors and social justice advocates in a shared commitment to change failed drug laws and reform the criminal justice system.”<doc-sep>EDITOR’S NOTE: Entrepreneurs everywhere are eyeing the billion-dollar legal weed industry, an economic opportunity unrivaled in modern N.J. history. NJ Cannabis Insider features exclusive and premium weekly content geared toward those interested in the marijuana industry. View a sample issue. In a few days, New Jersey could become the 11th state to legalize recreational marijuana and the first to launch a full commercial weed industry through its state legislature. That would mean people in the Garden State could legally have and use marijuana, a network of pot shops across the state, and past marijuana convictions could be cleared. But before any of that can happen, state lawmakers have to vote for legalization. NJ Advance Media has reported all of last week that the votes aren’t in place to secure legalization as the Legislature prepares to vote on the bill at the Statehouse in Trenton on Monday. But the governor and other lawmakers are working hard to swing the votes needed. If New Jersey does get legal weed, there’s a lot to unpack. So here are a handful of the biggest questions around legalization to help explain what would happen, based on what’s in the legalization plan. After it passes, I can just walk around with weed, right? Not immediately. Lawmakers have built in a six-month window to allow regulators a chance to make the rules and launch the industry. People wouldn’t be allowed to possess or use marijuana until the rules are made and sales have started. When would sales start? Again, probably about six months. This depends on the existing medical marijuana dispensaries getting approved to sell to the public. They would have to prove they have enough marijuana to sell to patients before they could sell to anyone else. Right now there are six medical marijuana dispensaries in the state, and that number could double before sales would start. It would likely be another six months — so a year after passage — before recreational pot shops would get up and running. Where could I buy it? There would be pot shops all across the state, except in towns that have banned marijuana businesses. However, any grower, processor or retailer would have to be approved by the state as well as by the town where they plan to open. More than 60 towns have already taken steps to ban marijuana businesses, but they’d have to do so again after legalization, since the bill voids any bans that were enacted before passage. Expect dozens of towns to enact bans. What could I buy? There will be a variety of products available at the dispensaries. Everything from flower — what most people call buds — and oils to edibles. As the market matures, there will likely be even more marijuana products for sale. Where would I be able to consume? This one is pretty straightforward. Marijuana use would only be allowed at private residences or at sanctioned consumption lounges, which would be opened at some dispensaries. You wouldn’t be able to smoke while walking down the street or in the park. But even in towns that have banned marijuana, people would still be allowed to have and use weed. The bans would only apply to marijuana businesses. Towns would not be able to ban marijuana outright. What about my marijuana conviction? People with low-level marijuana convictions would be eligible to have them expunged, a fancy word for clearing a criminal record. Those convictions include distribution up to one ounce and possession up to five pounds. This would not happen automatically. Anyone seeking an expungement would have to apply with the Superior Court where they were charged, but would get extra help from the courts. There’s a lot more to get into, but these are the basics of the legalization plan. Expect more details if lawmakers are able to pass the bill on Monday. Payton Guion may be reached at PGuion@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @PaytonGuion. Find NJ.com on Facebook. Have a tip? Tell us. nj.com/tips Are you interested in the N.J. cannabis industry? Subscribe here for exclusive insider information from NJ Cannabis Insider.<doc-sep>New Jersey lawmakers and Gov. Phil Murphy continued to work behind the scenes last week to secure support for legalizing adult recreational marijuana use and sales, nj.com reports. Two state legislative committees on March 18 approved the weed bill, setting up votes on final approval Monday, March 25. Not everyone is on board, with Warren County Republican Sen. Mike Doherty saying “backroom dealing by Trenton Democrats over legalization is almost certain to lead to more drug dealing in communities across New Jersey.” In Pennsylvania, two state senators sent a memo to colleagues March 18 seeking co-sponsors on measure to legalize marijuana in the Keystone State, as well. The Pennsylvania proposal comes as Lt. Gov. John Fetterman continues his visits to all 67 counties on a listening tour to gather public input on legalizing cannabis. His Lehigh and Northampton county stops are expected in early April, his office has said. Pennsylvania’s proposal also has its detractors, including Republican state Sen. Mike Folmer, whose support for medical marijuana helped turn that bill into reality, Lebanon Daily News reports. Folrmer, who represents Lebanon in addition to parts of Dauphin and York counties, told the newspaper last week nothing he’s seen in the new Senate proposal would lift his opposition to recreational use. Democratic Sens. Daylin Leach and Sharif Street said March 18 they would soon introduce a bill to end Pennsylvania’s prohibition on cannabis. According to their cosponsorship memo, some aspects of their proposal include: Allowing private consumption of cannabis by anyone who is 21 years old or more. Allowing people to grow up to six cannabis plants in their homes for personal use. Automatically expunging previous criminal convictions for cannabis-related offenses and commute sentences resulting from such convictions. Allowing “micro-growers” to grow cannabis in their homes and sell the cannabis to processors and dispensaries. State Rep. Jake Wheatley Jr. introduced a House bill, HB 50, with some of the same goals. Both the House and Senate proposals would have this year and most of 2020 to be considered by the Republican-controlled Legislature. On the expungement front, New Jersey’s legalization proposal would allow people to clear convictions for distributing up to one ounce of marijuana and possessing up to five pounds of weed, according to nj.com. “Marijuana prohibition has failed,” state Sen. Nicholas Scutari, D-Union, said in a statement celebrating last week’s committee approvals. “It is time to end the detrimental effect these archaic drug laws are having on our residents and make adult use marijuana legal. "This bill will create a strictly regulated system that permits adults to purchase limited amounts of marijuana for personal use. It will bring marijuana out of the underground market so that it can be controlled, regulated and taxed, just as alcohol has been for decades." Including Pennsylvania and New Jersey, 34 states plus the District of Columbia, Guam, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands have medical marijuana programs, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. Alaska, Washington, Oregon, California, Nevada, Colorado, Vermont, Massachusetts, Maine, D.C. and Northern Mariana Islands, a U.S. territory, also approved recreational use by adults ages 21 and older. Kurt Bresswein may be reached at kbresswein@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow him on Twitter @KurtBresswein and Facebook. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook.<doc-sep>
EDITOR’S NOTE: Entrepreneurs everywhere are eyeing the billion-dollar legal weed industry, an economic opportunity unrivaled in modern N.J. history. NJ Cannabis Insider features exclusive and premium weekly content geared toward those interested in the marijuana industry. View a sample issue. Only two days before a planned vote on whether to legalize marijuana in New Jersey, state leaders remain a handful of votes short of the number they need to pass the measure, NJ Advance Media has learned. As of Saturday evening, Gov. Phil Murphy and fellow top Democratic officials have either 16 or 17 members of the state Senate committed to voting for the bill Monday, according to five sources with direct knowledge of the situation. But they need 21 votes for the legislation to pass. That means four lawmakers would have to come onboard — and that could involve the tough task of getting those who are publicly against the proposal to flip sides, according to the sources, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to speak candidly about the matter. “It’s an uphill climb,” one source said. Both houses of the Democratic-controlled state Legislature — the Senate and the Assembly — need to pass the bill for Murphy to sign it into law. The sources said the Assembly is expected to have the 41 votes needed for the measure to pass there. But the lower house won’t move forward with voting if the proposal doesn’t have the votes in the Senate, according to the sources. Murphy and other leaders have spent much of this week calling lawmakers to whip up votes. Supporters of the proposal also got high-profle help Friday from actress Whoopi Goldberg, a West Orange resident who called a few lawmakers on the fence or leaning no. But two sources said even though Murphy has “burned up” the phones, the governor has managed to flip only one legislator from “no” to “yes”: state Sen. Nicholas Sacco, D-Hudson. Another source said Murphy has flipped two lawmakers. Behind the scenes, some insiders have noted that state Senate President Stephen Sweeney, D-Gloucester, hasn’t been able to convince five South Jersey allies in the Senate to vote yes. Others say Murphy has been unable to persuade a handful of allies in the north — especially state Sen. Richard Codey, D-Essex, a former governor who is staunchly opposed to legal pot. Still, three sources said they still see "a path” to 21 votes in the Senate. Sources said Nia Gill, D-Essex, is leaning yes, though she hasn’t committed. One source said Nilsa Cruz-Perez, D-Camden, is a possible yes. So far, a number of Democratic senators remain in the “no” column — in the north, Codey and Ronald Rice, D-Essex, and in the south, Dawn Addiego, D-Burlington; Bob Andrzejczak, D-Cape May; James Beach, D-Camden; and Fred Madden, D-Gloucester. A number of other senators remain undecided. Then, there are Republican senators. Sources said they still hope to convince Christopher “Kip” Bateman, R-Somerset, and Declan O’Scanlon, R-Monmouth, even though both have said publicly this week they would vote no. “We’re not giving up,” one source said. The bill would legalize, tax, and regulate recreational marijuana for those 21 and older in New Jersey. Murphy promised to legalize pot during his campaign, saying it would not only bring in more tax revenue but create a whole new industry and help improve social justice in the state. Recent polls have found a majority of New Jerseyans support legal weed. But detractors have said it could hurt public safety, lead users to more serious drug use, and negatively impact communities of color. If the vote falls apart, another may not be scheduled until the end of the year. Brent Johnson may be reached at bjohnson@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @johnsb01. Find NJ.com Politics on Facebook. Have a tip? Tell us. nj.com/tips Get the latest updates right in your inbox. Subscribe to NJ.com’s newsletters. Are you interested in the N.J. cannabis industry? Subscribe here for exclusive insider information from NJ Cannabis Insider.