Asbury Park Press

So, what will be the fate of the legal recreational marijuana bill as we enter the countdown to Gov. Phil Murphy's latest deadline for passage?

He reiterated last week that if the Legislature doesn't pass the weed package by the end of May, he will move ahead with the medical marijuana component of the bill on his own through an executive order.

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That prospect scares many legislators who want the entire marijuana legalization package to be approved. That package would not only make recreational pot legal, but expand the medical marijuana program and authorize expungement for so-called minor marijuana offenses.

The medical marijuana bill would expand the number of licensed dispensaries from the current six to 50. It also would allow an additional 18 cannabis cultivation facilities.

The expungement bill would clear the criminal records of those previously convicted of possession or sale of less than five pounds of marijuana — up to 80 times the amount that would be legal under the new recreational weed bill. That has made many legislators uneasy, and rightly so.

By all accounts, the Legislature is no closer to getting the votes it needs for passage of the full package in the Senate than it was last month. Depending on who you ask, it fell one to four votes short.

Changing the holdouts' minds by altering the language of the legislation seems unlikely. So, too, does trying to pass any of the three components of the bill separately. That could jeopardize the votes of those whose support for medical marijuana or expungement seemed a justifiable tradeof for pushing the whole package over the finish line.

Additionally, those who have been supporters of the three pillars of the bill may be harboring reservations as more information about the wisdom of one or more of those pillars has emerged over time.

We have written extensively about our concerns with each of them: legalization of recreational marijuana, the broad expansion of the qualifying health conditions for medical marijuana and liberal eligibility provisions for expungement.

We believe New Jersey would be best served if the Legislature held off on the package of bills again next month and committed itself to taking another hard look at the many concerns we and others have expressed about it. There are too many questions that have not been satisfactorily answered.

The governor and Legislature should do at least two things before moving ahead with a vote: First, create a FAQ on their respective web sites substantiating the purported benefits of the legislation and providing rebuttals, with links to relevant documentation, to concerns that have been raised.

Second, provide ample opportunities for the public to comment on the package of bills — something that has yet to be done. Given the stakes involved in legalization, critics should be able to provide their input and directly question lawmakers about it.

All but one of the states that has legalized recreational marijuana has done so via referendum. Citizens were given a direct say. In New Jersey, lawmakers chose to deny them that option. At the very least, lawmakers owe it to the public to hold public hearings in all corners of the state.

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