Everything (Yep, Everything) You Want to Know About Legal Cannabis in New Jersey
Rose Maura Lorre
Back in November, New Jersey voters overwhelmingly approved a ballot measure to decriminalize marijuana and establish a legal cannabis market statewide—which means 4/20 will really be a day worth celebrating this year. There’s just one slight problem: After state lawmakers spent months quibbling over how to roll the referendum’s directive, the path toward full legalization (complete with friendly, neighborhood cannabis shops) and decriminalization (including expungement of criminal records) has been anything but clear.
That’s in large part because most of the rules and regulations that will govern the market have yet to be written. Trenton is leaving the bulk of those decisions to a newly formed, five-member Cannabis Regulatory Commission, which just met for the first time this month. (You can follow the CRC on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram to keep informed of their progress.)
So if you’re wondering when you’ll be able to make a state-sanctioned cannabis purchase, where stores will be allowed to open, how the new system will benefit those most affected by the war or drugs, or what you can do to make your voice heard throughout this process, keep reading! With help from elected officials and progressive activists, we’ve attempted to answer every question you may have about legal cannabis in New Jersey.
Is recreational cannabis finally legal in New Jersey?
Yes! “As of January 1, 2021, cannabis is legal,” says Maplewood Deputy Mayor Dean Dafis. More specifically, adds Megan Yates, chair of the SOMA Action Racial Justice Cannabis Equity Initiative, “It is now legal for people ages 21 and older to possess up to six ounces of marijuana or up to 17 grams of hashish.” NBC News likewise reported back in February that “being under the influence of marijuana or possessing related paraphernalia are [also] no longer crimes for people 21 and over” in N.J. However, buying recreational cannabis or selling it without a license (which nobody has yet) are still technically illegal.
How much is six ounces of marijuana?
Six ounces is a lot, and a lot more than any other state with legalized cannabis currently allows. Just one ounce is enough to pack about 100 bowls or roll about 60 joints.
How long before I can walk into a store and legally buy marijuana?
Gov. Murphy told Vice News in late March, “There’s a chance that [we’re] six months away from being able to buy it in one of our medical dispensaries, that are already up and running.” (Those dispensaries can apply for licenses to also sell recreational cannabis without a prescription.) Murphy added, “My guess is, it’s longer than that for [recreational] retail—maybe end of year, maybe next year.”
What types of marijuana products will be legally sold in New Jersey once the market is established?
Says Yates, “Cannabis will be available as smokeable and edible products, as well as oils.”
Will marijuana products be labeled to show how strong they are, like the proof on a bottle of liquor?
Yes. “There will be rules regarding labeling requirements and those will be determined by the Cannabis Regulatory Commission over the next few months,” Yates explains.
I’m a medical marijuana patient. Do I need to worry about supply issues?
No. NJ.com reports that “medical dispensaries will have to prove to the commission they have more cannabis than they need to meet patient demand” before they can also begin selling recreational marijuana.
Will marijuana stores also be allowed to sell rolling papers, bongs, etc? Or will I have to get those somewhere else?
Yes, retailers will also be allowed to sell marijuana paraphernalia.
What will I need to purchase recreational marijuana? A special card? Certain kinds of ID?
Just like buying alcohol, “purchasing recreational marijuana will only require an ID to prove that you are at least 21 years old,” explains Yates. Medical marijuana will still require a special card available by prescription only.
Will I be able to buy recreational marijuana with a credit card?
Probably not. In other states that have legalized cannabis sales, “Cash and debit cards are currently the only methods of payment accepted,” explains Yates, “because credit cards will not be accepted until marijuana is federally decriminalized.”
What kinds of taxes will be levied on cannabis once the legal market is up and running?
Cannabis retail customers will pay a 7% sales tax, higher than New Jersey’s normal sales tax of 6.625%, at the point of sale. Individual towns can also levy a tax on local retailers’ annual sales of up to 2%, which those municipalities can then allocate as they choose. Additionally, cannabis cultivators (i.e. growers) will have to pay a “social equity excise fee;” 100% of that fee, as well as 70% of the sales tax generated from retail, “must fund community investment in ‘impact zones’ disproportionately hurt by criminalization and most decimated by the war on drugs,” Dafis explains. Those “impact zones” (also known as “opportunity zones”), which are reportedly expected to include neighboring communities like Newark, Irvington, Orange and East Orange, will also “have priority in licenses, grants and loans and should benefit most by the new industry.” ACLU-NJ campaign strategist Ami Kachalia notes that the state’s plan to funnel tax revenue toward impact zones “positions New Jersey as one of the states at the forefront as far as community reinvestment—however, it will all depend on how it’s implemented.”
Are Maplewood and South Orange planning to enact that 2% tax on local retailers?
Dafis says that Maplewood “recently passed the 2% local excise tax on our upcoming medical dispensary’s sales” (see more on the dispensary below), while South Orange Village President Sheena Collum says she “would recommend taking advantage of the 2% excise tax [in South Orange] in addition to negotiating community host agreements.”
Can my town prohibit cannabis retailers from opening within town limits?
Yes, although Dafis says Maplewood will be allowing retail cannabis and Collum says she’s “supportive of permitting retail operations” in South Orange. According to Dafis, individual towns have until August 21 to “opt out”—meaning, a town can choose not to allow any retailers within its limits. All towns that don’t opt out by then are automatically opted in and must let cannabis retailers continue to do business there for at least the next five years. However, “a town that decides to opt out now can opt back in later at any point,” Dafis adds. And even if your town opts out of retail, cannabis possession and usage will still be legal there.
What else will municipalities get to decide about cannabis retailers that open within town limits?
Dafis says that the list of considerations is long and involves typical zoning and public safety concerns, such as distance from schools and/or houses of worship, parking, pedestrian access, traffic control, security, loitering, effects on neighboring residential communities and relationship to existing commerce, and other regulatory compliance.
Moreover, “impact zones” are expected to receive preference for licenses, as well as to be able to decide for themselves how the tax revenue they receive is spent. “There are potentially hundreds of millions of dollars on the line,” says Kachalia. “We‘re pushing for a really strong community input process at local and state levels for having their voices heard.”
Will there be any marijuana stores opening in SOMA?
Yes! A new location of The Apothecarium, a medical cannabis dispensary that also has a location in Philipsburg, is expected to open in May on Springfield Avenue in Maplewood. (You can sign up for updates here or follow them on Facebook.) Dafis says he expects that The Apothecarium will apply for a license to sell recreational cannabis out of its Maplewood location as soon as regulations about that are put into place later this year.
Dafis adds that The Apothecarium has agreed to the terms of Maplewood’s local community host agreement, which includes a significant financial contribution to the local Municipal Alliance’s efforts to educate and prevent substance abuse among students in the South Orange-Maplewood School District, partnerships with local community groups and neighborhood associations, and to recruit for jobs through the Maplewood Library, focusing on diverse and re-entry candidates.
As for South Orange, Collum says, “We currently have a pending application before the N.J. Department of Health for a medical dispensary… [and expect to] learn the outcome of the application shortly.” She also expects the Village to provide “more details to the community regarding recreational retail dispensaries [once] we have more guidance from the CRC.”
The Apothecarium sounds a bit corporate. Is it?
The Apothecarium is owned by TerrAscend, a Canadian marijuana firm that bought California-based Apothecarium in 2019 and cultivates their own cannabis, which means they don’t have to rely on third-party suppliers. And, as Yates points out, “their executive leadership and Board of Directors are 100% white,” which is just one reason why, “as businesses begin to open in the area, SOMA Action Cannabis Equity Initiative will be advocating for SOMA residents to purchase from Black-owned cannabis businesses.”
What is the state doing to ensure that the cannabis market won’t be dominated by rich, white men?
One thing that’s already known: The licensing process will have some built-in measures to ensure a degree of diversity in the market. As Dafis explains, “There are mandatory licensing set-asides for women, other minorities and especially people of color—about 12 to 15% set aside for those categories.” Kachalia says the ACLU-NJ is cautiously optimistic that those metrics “provide a floor, not a ceiling, to how many people of color are granted licenses.”
Then there are the “micro-business” licenses that will be available only to New Jersey residents. These licenses will limit the number of employees you can have to no more than 10 and come with other size limitations as well, but on the plus side, they are expected to cost less while offering a way for more “mom and pop”-type entrepreneurs to get into the industry. Kachalia adds that once individuals open a business under one of these licenses, they will be able to later “level up” to a regular license as their business grows.
It’s really important to me that “Big Canna” doesn’t dominate New Jersey’s market, or my local retail options. What can I do about that?
“At the local level, there’s a lot of work that can be done,” Kachalia says. She advocates for municipalities to earmark a portion of the revenue generated from that 2% tax toward “seed money or startup capital to support the growth of smaller cannabis businesses,” which could go hand in hand with “pushing for more micro-businesses in your town.”
Those kinds of funding innovations are especially necessary in the cannabis industry, she notes, because “cannabis is still not legal on the federal level, which means you can’t just go to a bank and get a loan to start a cannabusiness. That’s a big reason why this industry has skewed so rich, whtie and male, because you need to be well-resourced. Providing other options for people to access capital is hugely important to making sure that equity happens in practice… Those are areas where I would really encourage organizations like SOMA Action to make their voices heard at both the state and local levels.”
Along those same lines, Collum adds that the best way to voice your concerns is “to participate in public hearings and town halls once they are scheduled. The more participation, the better.”
I want to open a cannabis business. Where do I start?
Kachalia notes that there will be six different types of licenses individuals or businesses can apply for: cultivator, manufacturer, wholesaler, distributor, retailer, and delivery—as well as the aforementioned micro-business licenses.
That application process has yet to be established by the CRC, and there are still questions to be answered about application fees, down payments for licenses once applicants are approved, etc. Dafis says, “Sometime this fall, give or take, we're going to get some sense of what the CRC’s regulations are going to look like. In the meantime, applications will become available and people can see the criteria so they can get their licensing documentation in order.”
In the meantime, Dafis recommends that individuals “go to the town where you want to open your shop and say, ‘Hey, I’m an applicant for a license (or I’ve been granted a license) and I want to open my business in your town.’ You will probably have to have the support of the local town before you can be granted a license.”
For those looking to do business in SOMA, Collum also recommends “starting to evaluate real estate in our business districts and compare availability of storefronts with the Drug Free School Zone. An overlay would quickly identify where opportunities may be,” while Yates suggests reaching out to groups like the New Jersey CannaBusiness Association, Harvest 360 and Longview Strategic for more information and assistance.
What are the new penalties now for underage possession?
One of the key priorities for many N.J. lawmakers as they hashed out decriminalization was “limiting police interaction with youth and discouraging the over-policing of communities of color,” says Yates. The solution: “Anyone under the age of 21 found to be in possession of marijuana will receive written warnings for the first two offenses (including notification of parent or guardian); for subsequent offenses, the penalty is either a fine of up to $50, or community service.”
Can I now smoke marijuana in public spaces?
No. “Any place where drinking alcohol is illegal, such as parks or public transit, consuming marijuana is also illegal,” Yates explains. Punishments for these infractions depend in part on whether you’re indoors or outdoors, Kachalia adds, but will generally carry a fine.
Are the cops really not going to bother me anymore about using marijuana?
According to NBC News, police in N.J. can no longer “detain or arrest people for possessing or distributing small amounts of marijuana,” nor can cops use “the smell of marijuana as justification to conduct a search of a person or the person’s vehicle.” If they do, “They could face criminal charges if they violate that guideline or others involving searches of people under 21.”
What about driving under the influence of marijuana?
Yates notes that “driving under the influence of marijuana is still illegal,” while Kachalia says that driving while high “will be treated exactly the same” as driving drunk.
Will hemp growing still be illegal?
“Hemp plants (which must legally contain 0.3% THC or less) are federally legal to grow, but marijuana plants (which contain more than 0.3% THC) are still illegal to grow at home,” says Yates. “However, New Jersey state legislators are currently working on a bill that will legalize a limited home grow.”
What will happen to my dealer once legal marijuana is up and running? What is the state doing to ensure that these people will still have jobs?
Unfortunately, “There’s nothing in the legislation about that,” Kachalia says. ”I’m hopeful that the CRC will build in some strong programs to help support people who have been selling in the legacy market and would like to get into the industry, to make sure there's a feasible pathway for them.”
Also, what happens to my dealer now if he or she is caught selling without a license?
“When it comes to selling, there’s now a first-time warning for the first offense,” Kachalia explains. “After that, the old penalties that have long existed still apply.” She adds that the ACLU-NJ “did advocate for all of those penalties to be downgraded so that they wouldn't be as severe. That’s an area we will continue to work on.”
Are New Jerseyans’ marijuana convictions and criminal records going to be expunged?
“Everyone who was arrested and/or convicted before, they would be eligible to have those records expunged,” says Dafis. Furthermore, “Those records cannot be used against them with respect to access to credit, housing, employment, or anywhere else in society where these awful convictions have kept people back.”
Tara Mellon, another Cannabis Equity Initiative member, adds that the state has given itself a deadline of July 1, 2021, to both “take action to dismiss pending marijuana charges” and to “expunge prior marijuana records.” However, “There is a huge backlog in addressing expungements...so it's going to take a while.”
What steps do I have to take to get my marijuana-related criminal record expunged? Do I have to submit some sort of application? Will it cost me anything?
“We do know that no fees will be associated [with expungement] to make it equitable,” says Dafis. But other questions—such as, how far back are we going to expunge records? And, where do I go to get my record expunged?—still need to be ironed out. All of this may take a while, Dafis adds, because “unfortunately, New Jersey’s judicial records are not digitized, which means a database needs to be built; plus, the courts need to build a process to implement expungements.”
Why are people still incarcerated right now for cannabis-related convictions when the drug has been decriminalized?
Good question! Gov. Murphy has not pardoned or released those currently incarcerated, despite months of pressure from various civil rights groups to do so. Here’s a petition you can sign about that; or, you can also join the SOMA Action Racial Justice Cannabis Equity Initiative to make your voice heard.
Tell me more about SOMA Action’s Cannabis Equity Initiative and how I can get involved!
The Cannabis Equity Initiative, a subcommittee of the SOMA Action Racial Justice Committee, was formed in late 2020 after New Jersey voters moved to legalize cannabis at the ballot box. The group, which (for now) meets virtually every month, is “working to advance an equitable cannabis industry in South Orange and Maplewood,” Yates explains. To find out more and how you can get involved, email Megan Yates at yates.meganl@gmail.com.