Katelyn Baker
Well-Known Member
With Democrats favored to take back the governorship next year, the only two people left in the running for the party's nomination favor full-scale legalization of marijuana.
That makes it more likely to happen in early 2018, which is when, Senate President Stephen Sweeney predicts, the Legislature will pass it and Republican Gov. Chris Christie, a staunch opponent of legalization, will be out of office.
"Early 2018. Look at it this way: [State Sen.] Nick Scutari's been working on this since 2014. So it's not something that's brand new," Sweeney said.
Phil Murphy, the frontrunner for the Democratic nomination, is on record in support of legalization.
Assemblyman John Wisniewski, who has set up a gubernatorial exploratory committee, said a visit to Amsterdam early this year convinced him that legalization is the way to go.
"I was mixed on it, and then earlier in the year my daughter was doing her junior year abroad in Amsterdam," Wisniewski said. "I went there and it's actually technically not legal there and they have an official policy of ignoring it. You have all these coffee shops set up where people go and buy it and smoke it in the coffee shops. They collect revenue on it and it's really not a big deal ... For me, seeing it work in the real world make all the difference."
Democrats enjoy a natural advantage in blue New Jersey, and most insiders believe Republicans will have a hard time winning the governorship after eight years of the scandal-plagued Christie, whose approval rating stands at just 21 percent, according to a new poll released Wednesday morning.
If Republicans pull off an upset and retain the governor's office, legalization is less likely, though a change in marijuana policy could be in the offing.
Republican Assemblyman Jack Ciattarelli, who has declared his candidacy, said he does not back full-scale legalization. But, he said, he supports decriminalization of marijuana that treats possession of small amounts like a traffic offense.
"Those that have a very, very small amount in their possession that does not suggest in any way, shape or form or intent an intent to distribute, I think it should be like the point system with motor vehicles. You don't lose your license on the first or second violation. You get the six points, you lose your license," Ciattarelli said. "If we catch you with a small amount over a certain period, we're not going to incarcerate you, but we will force you to go through some type of therapy."
Assembly minority leader Jon Bramnick, who says he's considering a run for governor, said he also believes New Jerseyans should not get criminal records for possessing small amounts of marijuana. He suggested expanding the state's conditional dismissal program that allows some defendants charged with disorderly conduct to get the charges dismissed after a period of supervision.
"I don't want people to have criminal records who have small amounts of marijuana," Bramnick said. He said, however, that he's not ready to commit to legalization.
Lt. Gov. Kim Guadagno, who has not yet declared her candidacy, declined to comment.
A nine-member, bipartisan delegation from New Jersey left for Colorado over the weekend to study that state's legalized marijuana program. Most of the delegation is scheduled to return on Wednesday.
Sweeney said he and others who made the trip, including lawmakers, lobbyists and representatives from the alcohol and tobacco industries, were impressed by what they saw.
"It was extremely impressive. When I went into a dispensary, there was an armed guard. You had to have ID. The place was spotless. There were people there that are your neighbors," said Sweeney, who returned to New Jersey Monday night. "Everyone has this vision of people being druggies."
Sweeney has committed to passing legislation to legalize marijuana and said it will be sponsored by Scutari, who organized the Colorado trip.
Assembly Speaker Vincent Prieto has called legalization "part of an ongoing discussion," but made it clear that it's coming sooner or later. He also noted the Assembly voted to decriminalize marijuana but the bill did not move in the Senate.
"Realistically, when you consider the facts, it's just a matter of when, not if, New Jersey legalizes marijuana," Prieto said in a statement. "We'd have to consider how to do that, what state revenues would be involved and how the state would use that revenue, but we know locking people up for nonviolent drug crimes is unproductive and costly, so this would be both fiscally and socially responsible."
News Moderator: Katelyn Baker 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: After Colorado Visit, Sweeney Predicts N.J. Will Legalize Marijuana In Early 2018
Author: Matt Friedman
Contact: 703.647.7999
Photo Credit: Brendan Smialowski
Website: Politico
That makes it more likely to happen in early 2018, which is when, Senate President Stephen Sweeney predicts, the Legislature will pass it and Republican Gov. Chris Christie, a staunch opponent of legalization, will be out of office.
"Early 2018. Look at it this way: [State Sen.] Nick Scutari's been working on this since 2014. So it's not something that's brand new," Sweeney said.
Phil Murphy, the frontrunner for the Democratic nomination, is on record in support of legalization.
Assemblyman John Wisniewski, who has set up a gubernatorial exploratory committee, said a visit to Amsterdam early this year convinced him that legalization is the way to go.
"I was mixed on it, and then earlier in the year my daughter was doing her junior year abroad in Amsterdam," Wisniewski said. "I went there and it's actually technically not legal there and they have an official policy of ignoring it. You have all these coffee shops set up where people go and buy it and smoke it in the coffee shops. They collect revenue on it and it's really not a big deal ... For me, seeing it work in the real world make all the difference."
Democrats enjoy a natural advantage in blue New Jersey, and most insiders believe Republicans will have a hard time winning the governorship after eight years of the scandal-plagued Christie, whose approval rating stands at just 21 percent, according to a new poll released Wednesday morning.
If Republicans pull off an upset and retain the governor's office, legalization is less likely, though a change in marijuana policy could be in the offing.
Republican Assemblyman Jack Ciattarelli, who has declared his candidacy, said he does not back full-scale legalization. But, he said, he supports decriminalization of marijuana that treats possession of small amounts like a traffic offense.
"Those that have a very, very small amount in their possession that does not suggest in any way, shape or form or intent an intent to distribute, I think it should be like the point system with motor vehicles. You don't lose your license on the first or second violation. You get the six points, you lose your license," Ciattarelli said. "If we catch you with a small amount over a certain period, we're not going to incarcerate you, but we will force you to go through some type of therapy."
Assembly minority leader Jon Bramnick, who says he's considering a run for governor, said he also believes New Jerseyans should not get criminal records for possessing small amounts of marijuana. He suggested expanding the state's conditional dismissal program that allows some defendants charged with disorderly conduct to get the charges dismissed after a period of supervision.
"I don't want people to have criminal records who have small amounts of marijuana," Bramnick said. He said, however, that he's not ready to commit to legalization.
Lt. Gov. Kim Guadagno, who has not yet declared her candidacy, declined to comment.
A nine-member, bipartisan delegation from New Jersey left for Colorado over the weekend to study that state's legalized marijuana program. Most of the delegation is scheduled to return on Wednesday.
Sweeney said he and others who made the trip, including lawmakers, lobbyists and representatives from the alcohol and tobacco industries, were impressed by what they saw.
"It was extremely impressive. When I went into a dispensary, there was an armed guard. You had to have ID. The place was spotless. There were people there that are your neighbors," said Sweeney, who returned to New Jersey Monday night. "Everyone has this vision of people being druggies."
Sweeney has committed to passing legislation to legalize marijuana and said it will be sponsored by Scutari, who organized the Colorado trip.
Assembly Speaker Vincent Prieto has called legalization "part of an ongoing discussion," but made it clear that it's coming sooner or later. He also noted the Assembly voted to decriminalize marijuana but the bill did not move in the Senate.
"Realistically, when you consider the facts, it's just a matter of when, not if, New Jersey legalizes marijuana," Prieto said in a statement. "We'd have to consider how to do that, what state revenues would be involved and how the state would use that revenue, but we know locking people up for nonviolent drug crimes is unproductive and costly, so this would be both fiscally and socially responsible."
News Moderator: Katelyn Baker 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: After Colorado Visit, Sweeney Predicts N.J. Will Legalize Marijuana In Early 2018
Author: Matt Friedman
Contact: 703.647.7999
Photo Credit: Brendan Smialowski
Website: Politico