New Jersey nixes vote to legalize medical, recreational cannabis

An effort to legalize marijuana in New Jersey collapsed this week after state house Democrats were unable to muster enough support Monday to salvage legislative proposals that would have expanded a program to use cannabis for medicinal purposes and expunged marijuana-related crimes, NJBiz reported. The decision to postpone a vote on legalization came a week after New Jersey’s Senate Judiciary Committee and Assembly Appropriations Committee advanced a pair of bills that set up what would have been a historic Garden State vote. New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy, a former Goldman Sachs executive who promised to legalize recreational cannabis use for adults over 21 within his first 100 days in office, pledged to sign the legislation once the so-called weed bill hit his desk in Trenton. Murphy was reportedly busy whipping up support for the initiative over the weekend, even turning to West Orange resident Whoopi Goldberg to help persuade lawmakers to vote for legalization. Supporters of legal weed in New Jersey claim that it would be an economic boon to the state, particularly its real estate sector, as noted last summer by The Real Deal. But with a vote now cancelled due to a reported lack of support in the upper house of the legislature, NJBiz noted that a new vote might not take place until after midterm elections in November. [NJBIZ]