New Jersey Marijuana Sales Could Start Just Weeks After Election Day Under Key Senator’s Plan

If New Jersey voters approve a marijuana legalization referendum on their ballots next week, sales in the Garden State could get rolling at record speed. A plan by one top lawmaker would allow the state’s existing medical marijuana dispensaries to begin selling to adults over 21 within a month of the election.

“I think one of the most important things is to allow people to buy legal cannabis immediately,” state Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Nick Scutari (D-Union) said in an interview with NJ.com on Tuesday.

Those preferring to grow their cannabis at home, however, would be out of luck: “People will not be permitted to get marijuana from illegalized sources or homegrown or anything like that at this point,” Scutari said, adding that the issue “can probably be addressed in the future.”