NJ Marijuana Legalization Bill To Be Revived: Here's When

Many of you probably thought marijuana legalization was DOA ... or at least until after the November elections, right? Well, think again.

New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy and top lawmakers are reshuffling the deck and turning their schedules upside-down to get it done very soon, sources told Patch.

In fact, lawmakers believe it could be brought back to a vote as soon as May.

Indeed, because of the renewed effort, Murphy withdrew his plans this week to announce a big expansion of the state's medical marijuana program, a move that would have quadrupled it to serve as many as 200,000 patients.

Murphy agreed to hold off, sources told Patch, because lawmakers worried that they would lose leverage in getting as many as five Democrats to change their minds and agree to vote in favor of legalizing marijuana.

Efforts to obtain comment from the Murphy administration were not immediately successful.

New Jersey lawmakers canceled a vote on marijuana legalization on Monday after it became clear that there weren't enough votes to pass it. Murphy addressed the issue and its future at a press conference, which you can watch below.

Read more: New Jersey Cancels Vote On Marijuana Legalization

Murphy signaled that he will try again. "History is rarely made at the first attempt," he said. "History is often a bumpy road."

Senate President Stephen Sweeney said he was "disappointed" that the bill couldn't be passed, but he said he remains commited to passing it in the future.

"The legalizaton of adult-use marijuana will get passed in the state of New Jersey, one way or another," Sweeney said during a press conference.

Sweeney has said that, if the bill failed to get support now, the legislation could be reintroduced after the November state Legislature elections or in the form of a public referendum.

Murphy, however, said he prefers to push the issue "legislatively," and not through a public referendum – despite polls showing strong public support for marijuana legalization.

"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 in a statement.

Murphy and legislative leaders were reportedly five votes short of securing enough votes in the state Senate that would legalize adult-use marijuana and create an expungement process for individuals convicted of low-level marijuana offenses.

Democrats have 26 members in the 40-member Senate, and it's not clear if any Republicans were expected to cross party lines to support the legslation.

The state Senate was scheduled to vote on the legislation during its 12 noon Monday session, and the Assembly had also planned to vote after that. Both votes were canceled, with no rescheduled dates.

One "hard-no" Democrat, Sen. Ronald L. Rice, said "we should have learned a lesson about the process of legalizing recreational marijuana, which is much different than medical marijuana."

"The public has not properly been educated on the topic of recreational marijuana," Rice said. "People don't realize, particularly people in urban communities, how it will affect their lives. In urban communities, neighborhoods will struggle against the spread of marijuana bodegas disguised as dispensaries."

Rice said the state should be pushing for legislation on the decriminalization of recreational marijuana.

"We should be promulgating for it, especially if it's not about money and all about social justice like the governor says it is," he said. "I believe if we put together a decriminalization bill, it will receive 120 votes in the Legislature. This is what we should be putting our time and effort into passing."

With the delay, Murphy had said he will take executive action to expand the medical-marijuana license program since there is a reported license shortage for the thousands of people who have sought to obtain the drug for medicinal purposes.

Now he has apparently changed his mind, at the urging of lawmakers.

Indeed, the legislation could undergo wholesale changes to gain approval of senators who are on the fence. The bill already has undergone some reshaping since the draft of the legislation was released almost two weeks ago.

Sweeney clarified – if not changed – one provision of the bill that said employers would not be able to discriminate against marijuana users or prior offenders in their hiring decisions.

Soon afer the draft was released, Sweeney sought to reassure an angry business community by telling them that you may be denied a job, or lose a job, if you test positive for marijuana.

Read more: 16 Things To Know About NJ Legal Marijuana Bill Before It's Law

Also, Senate Bill 2703 – and its companion, Assembly Bill 4497 – included 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 municipality that wanted 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 marijuana legalization to do that. Read more: Wall Marijuana Sale Ban Would Be 'Null And Void' Under State Bill

Provisions in the bill would have established an expedited expungement process for individuals convicted of low-level marijuana offenses, but would have prevented offenses that happen in certain areas – such as educational facilities and subsidized housing – from being discarded.

Additionally, there were a number of provisions that aimed to ensure broad-based participation in the industry for minority and women-owned business enterprises, low- and middle-income individuals and disadvantaged communities across the state.

Under the terms of an agreement between Murphy and top lawmakers, adult-use marijuana would have been subject to an excise tax of $42 per ounce, which would have been imposed when marijuana was to be cultivated, lawmakers said. New Jerseyans would have paid possibly the lowest marijuana tax in the country, coming in around 10 percent.

Adult-use marijuana would have been governed by a Cannabis Regulatory Commission, composed of five members. Three members would have been appointed by the governor, with the governor's initial appointments to serve terms of at least four years and not be subject to Senate confirmation.

Two other members would have been appointed by the governor, upon the recommendations of the Speaker and Senate President. The commission would have promulgated all regulations to govern the industry and would have overseen the applications for licensing of adult-use marijuana dispensaries, lawmakers say.