New Year To Bring Westfield Marijuana Commission

WESTFIELD, NJ - The long debated, long postulated, long awaited legislation on legalizing recreational marijuana on a state level has rounded the final corner and Westfield officials are preparing to deal with the repercussions, whatever they may be.

"Last week, after state lawmakers advanced a bill that would legalize the possession and personal use of recreational marijuana, I met with Sen. Tom Kean to better understand the process and timing for when this bill may become law," Brindle said. "Committees from both the state Senate and Assembly approved the bill, which now awaits a full vote in the state Legislature next week before it’s sent for signature to Governor Murphy."

Indeed, state Senate and Assembly committees voted to advance the legislation to a full vote by the state Legislature. The bill also requires Gov. Phil Murphy's signature to become law.

The Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee vote was 7-4 in favor, while the Assembly Appropriations Committee voted 7-3 to advance the bill.

"We can act like marijuana doesn't exist, that it doesn't take place in this world," said Senate President Stephen Sweeney, noting the thousands who are arrested each year for pot possession. "It's time to make this industry legitimate, to regulate it."

The "Marijuana Legalization Act" would allow users 21 years old and up to possess up to an ounce of pot.

If passed, individual communities would need to decide what sort of restrictions, if any, they would want to impose. Some communities, like Chatham Township, passed an ordinance that banned the sale of marijuana. The ban includes "marijuana cultivation facilities, marijuana production or manufacturing facilities, marijuana testing facilities, and retail marijuana stores." The ban is a preemptive measure in case a marijuana is legalized recreationally on the state level. It will not impact medical marijuana, which has become easier to obtain since Murphy took office in January.

Chatham's ordinance passed unanimously. It's not the first town to pass an ordinance banning pot sales; Ocean City, West Caldwell, North Caldwell, Toms River, Old Bridge, Point Pleasant, and Berkeley have all taken steps to ban sales in their towns.

Brindle said Westfield is going to take time to decide what the best course of action is for the town.

"I want to reassure this governing body and the public that no decision on this will be made without broad input from our full Council, public health officials, our police, and most importantly the public, to determine if the sale of legalized marijuana makes sense for our community once all of the facts are known," Brindle said. "That includes revenue benefits, health risks, crime impact, and the position taken by surrounding communities. I will be establishing a commission to evaluate it immediately after the new year who will be tasked with soliciting input and making recommendations."

(Photo courtesy of Shutterstock)

Thanks for reading! Learn more about posting announcements or events to your local Patch site here. Have a news tip you'd like to share? Or maybe you have a press release you would like to submit or a correction you'd like to request? Send an email to russ.crespolini@patch.com

Subscribe to your local Patch newsletter by clicking here. You can also have them delivered to your phone screen by downloading our Apple iOS app here, or by visiting the Google Play store for the Android app here.