Proposed Marijuana Legislation Voids Existing Chatham Twp. Ban

CHATHAM, NJ - The Chatham Township Committee voted in April night to ban commercial sales of marijuana within the town. The ban was considered a preemptive measure in case a marijuana is legalized recreationally on the state level.

And if they want it to remain in effect they may have to do it again, as a provision in the new legislation would nullify Chatham's actions.

The bill pending in the state Legislature to make adult recreational marijuana use legal may make that five-hour meeting and unanimous vote by the council meaningless.

Senate Bill 2703 (and its companion, Assembly Bill 4497), the bills that would legalize recreational marijuana includes a provision that would make "null and void" any ordinances that have been passed in towns across the state to ban the sales of either or both.

"... any ordinance enacted by a local governmental entity prior to the effective date of this section addressing the issue of prohibiting one or more types of cannabis-related activities within the jurisdiction of the local governmental entity is null and void," the bill says.

Any municipality that wants to ban sales, facilities, growing operations or manufacture of marijuana products — for either adult recreational use or for medicinal purposes — would have 180 days following the enactment of the pending bill to legalize recreational marijuana use by adults to enact an ordinance banning the facilities, if they still sought to do that. Chatham Township is one of 50 towns that have banned retail sales ahead of the proposed marijuana legalization.

If the current legislation is passed and signed into law, marijuana use for adults 21 and older becomes legal throughout the state, and municipalities who wish to ban it will have to "opt out."

A commission will be established by the state to establish regulations concerning growth, sale, taxation and other aspects of the law. Once those regulations are passed and made public, towns will then have 180 days to decide what actions they want to take.

For the towns that have bans already in place, they will be forced to adopt them again — which comes with expense of the legal advertisements, the public hearings and the conflicts that have marked the debates in many towns.

Legislative committees in both the New Jersey Senate and the Assembly approved a bill that would legalize recreational marijuana for adults 21 and older in the state this week. The bill now heads to the full Senate and Assembly, which would each need to approve it before the bill could land on Gov. Phil Murphy's desk for his signature.

The ban included "marijuana cultivation facilities, marijuana production or manufacturing facilities, marijuana testing facilities, and retail marijuana stores."

See related: 16 Things To Know About NJ Legal Marijuana Bill Before It’s Law

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