A New Jersey municipal prosecutor and leading state senator today said he will introduce a bill to legalize marijuana, creating a marketplace similar to that in Colorado for those ages 21 and older.

"It's time that we legalize marijuana here in New Jersey," Senate Judiciary Chairman

, D-Union/Middlesex, said in an afternoon conference call with reporters.

The announcement comes amid growing interest nationwide in changing marijuana laws, including in Pennsylvania, where lawmakers are slated to review a medical cannabis bill Tuesday.

Legalization efforts in New Jersey and Pennsylvania face long odds of becoming law under each state's sitting Republican governor.

Scutari said he plans to introduce his proposal within the next month. It would generate tax revenue and save money spent on law enforcement and incarceration of marijuana-law offenders, he said.

"The bottom line is our current drug laws aren't working," Scutari, who has been the prosecutor for Linden in Union County since 2003, said during the conference call.

The measure would go beyond efforts that failed

.

"This is not decriminalization," Scutari said. "This is legalization similar to the Colorado model that has recently been enacted."

Decriminalization still supports the illegal drug trade, he said. A regulated model of legalized marijuana has benefits beyond finances, including eliminating drug-turf wars and arrests that can interfere with efforts to get into college and find employment, Scutari said.

"The benefits to this program would be far and wide," he said.

Difficult fight expected

Scutari said he anticipates a difficult fight, similar to New Jersey's efforts to legalize

.

"The way I see it is it's the opening of a dialogue on a controversial issue," Scutari said.

Former Gov. Jon Corzine signed New Jersey's Compassionate Use Medical Marijuana Act on Jan. 18, 2010, his last day in office. But largely because of concerns from Gov. Chris Christie, a former federal prosecutor, the first sales were delayed until Dec. 6, 2012.

Christie has been skeptical of making marijuana more widely available.

When he signed a law last year to ease access for young patients with serious medical conditions, he made it clear that he did not want to liberalize the law any further. By some measures, the state's law is the most restrictive of any in the 20 states plus the District of Columbia that allow marijuana for patients.

Scutari was a prime sponsor of the Senate bill creating the state's medical cannabis program but said it has been flawed in that, "People can't get it."

in Egg Harbor Township, Montclair and North Woodbridge and plans to open three more.

Today, he pointed to polls showing national support for marijuana legalization and his own experience in talking with law enforcement colleagues who say the enforcement of marijuana laws is generally a "complete waste of time."

"We're not delusional about how simple the effort will be," he said, calling the bill a step forward in changing state and national "archaic drug laws."

Attention nationwide has grown on legalizing marijuana since voters in Colorado and Washington state approved it starting this year. In Wisconsin, a Democratic state lawmaker is proposing that marijuana be legalized for both recreational and medicinal purposes.

Pennsylvania hearing set

In Pennsylvania, a bill to allow the use of marijuana for medical purposes will be the subject of a legislative hearing Tuesday before the Senate's Law and Justice Committee in the state Capitol. Seven members of the 50-person Senate have signed on as sponsors.

State Sen. Daylin Leach, D-Montgomery/Delaware, today announced a medical marijuana rally 9 a.m. Tuesday in the Capitol East Wing Rotunda before the hearing on

.

A spokesman for Gov. Tom Corbett said he remains opposed, even if the bill is scaled back to allow only non-intoxicating forms of marijuana.

In its current form, the 34-page Pennsylvania bill would permit people with medical needs and a doctor's approval to obtain an identification card that would allow them to acquire marijuana legally. It would create the Medical Cannabis Board and an enforcement arm within the state police.

Scutari said he couldn't yet release details of his legalization proposal, including on how many licenses for marijuana sales would be created or exactly how it would be regulated.

Beyond New Jersey, he called today for a national shift in marijuana laws.

"I think it should be a national effort by members of Congress, but I think that New Jersey should take the lead because it's the right thing to do regardless of what other states do," Scutari said.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.