TRENTON - A vote to legalize marijuana in New Jersey could come as soon as March 25 after Gov. Phil Murphy and legislative leaders announced that they've reached a deal on legal weed.

A full version of the bill hasn't been released yet, but Murphy, Senate President Stephen Sweeney, Assembly Speaker Craig Coughlin, Sen. Nicholas Scutari and Assemblywoman Annette Quijano announced in a joint statement that they had come to an agreement on regulatory control, sales taxes and municipal tax revenue — the last sticking points among the parties.

"Legalizing adult-use marijuana is a monumental step to reducing disparities in our criminal justice system," Murphy said in a statement. "I believe that this legislation will establish an industry that brings fairness and economic opportunity to all of our communities, while promoting public safety by ensuring a safe product and allowing law enforcement to focus their resources on serious crimes."

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The bill is expected to be released within the next few days and will need to be approved by a committee — likely another joint Senate and Assembly budget committee — before it goes up for a floor vote.

The next scheduled voting session is March 25, but it's still unclear whether legal weed has enough support to pass in either chamber. Sweeney previously has said he wouldn't put a marijuana legalization bill up for a vote without assurance that it would pass.

"This plan will allow for the adult use of cannabis in a responsible way," Sweeney said in a statement. "It will create a strictly regulated system that permits adults to purchase limited amounts of marijuana for personal use. It will bring marijuana out of the underground market so that it can be controlled, regulated and taxed, just as alcohol has been since the end of Prohibition."

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'Devil's in the details'

The new marijuana legalization bill will feature changes in three key areas, notably the way the state and municipalities would collect taxes on legal weed.

Instead of charging customers a tax rate on cannabis purchases, New Jersey would tax legal weed at a flat rate of $42 per ounce, imposed on cultivators growing the cannabis plant. Those taxes eventually would be passed onto the consumer.

That tax would remain the same no matter the price of cannabis, meaning that when prices fall, the tax rate would effectively grow larger.

The previous bill called for a 12 percent tax rate, which would have been the lowest legal weed tax rate in the United States.

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Local municipalities would be eligible to receive tax revenue from legal weed if they allow marijuana businesses in their town — 3 percent in municipalities with a legal weed dispensary; 2 percent in municipalities with a marijuana cultivation or manufacturing facility; and 1 percent in municipalities with a wholesaler.

"The time for legalization has come. The old ‘reefer madness’ myths have been dispelled," New Jersey CannaBusiness Association President Scott Rudder said in a statement. "It is time — time to bring New Jersey in line with other states that have moved ahead with legalization and realized the numerous benefits it brings," he said.

The deal announced Tuesday also details the makeup of the five-member Cannabis Regulatory Commission: Three commissioners will be appointed by the governor and one each by the Senate president and Assembly speaker. They will serve four-year terms.

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The commission will be in charge of licensing marijuana dispensaries and creating rules and regulations governing the industry.

The bill also outlines a process for expedited expungements of low-level marijuana offenses, such as possession of under 1 ounce of the drug, and would automatically prevent them from disqualifying someone for various educational, housing and job opportunities.

Murphy also noted that the bill would feature "a number of provisions" to ensure "broad-based participation" from low- and middle-income individuals, businesses owned by minorities, women and disabled veterans and those from "disadvantaged communities across the state."

Amol Sinha, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of New Jersey, said the deal was welcome news. But Sinha said he'd hold off judgment until the bill is available for public review. In November, the legal weed bill wasn't released until three days before the budget committee hearing.

"The devil's in the details. We need to know what it is they agreed upon and see a finer-tuned, nuanced version of the bill. It all sounds good, but we need a deeper dive into it," Sinha said.

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In a statement, Sen. Gerald Cardinale, R-Morris, called the legal weed bill a "shameful abdication" of the government's responsibility to "safeguard public health and safety.

"The social justice argument for marijuana legalization is utter B.S.," Cardinale said. "The judges and prosecutors who are handling marijuana sentences are simply following our existing drug laws. They were appointed by the administration with the consent of the state Senate."

"If they are not doing their job in a colorblind fashion, then let’s hold them accountable that egregious offense. The answer isn’t to legalize a dangerous drug, and put more people in harm’s way," he said.

Keep the conversation in going in "Let's Talk About Marijuana," our Facebook group dedicated to the ongoing legal weed discussions and debate.

Mike Davis; @byMikeDavis: 732-643-4223; mdavis@gannettnj.com