New Jersey Voters to Decide on Recreational Marijuana Legalization

After two failed attempts this year to push recreational marijuana legalization through the state’s legislature, New Jersey will now leave the decision up to voters.

“We are moving forward with a plan to seek voter approval to legalize adult use marijuana in New Jersey,” said Senate President Steve Sweeney and Senator Nicholas Scutari, chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, in a joint statement. “We introduced legislation today to authorize a public referendum for a proposal that will lead to the creation of a system that allows adults to purchase and use marijuana for recreational purposes in a responsible way.”

The proposed question regarding the New Jersey Marijuana Legalization Amendment must first be approved by the state’s legislature before it can appear on the ballot. A draft of the proposed ballot question reads, “Do you approve amending the Constitution to legalize a controlled form of marijuana called ‘cannabis’?”

“We will have the legislature vote on the plan during the current legislative session and expect the proposal to be on the ballot in 2020, when voter turnout will be maximized for the national election. We are confident it will be approved by the Senate, the Assembly and the voters,” said Sens. Sweeney and Scutari.