Second Forum On Cannabis In Randolph On June 9

RANDOLPH, NJ — The Randolph Township Cannabis Subcommittee will be holding a public forum on June 9 about the legalization of marijuana.

The subcommittee wants to hear from residents and business owners on whether or not cannabis businesses should be allowed to set up shop in town.

The forum will take place from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. at the municipal building, 502 Millbrook Avenue in Randolph.

It is the second of two public forums on this topic, the first one having been held back on April 28. Here is the PowerPoint shared by the subcommittee then. The Randolph Township Cannabis Working Group has also created a survey to gather information from Randolph Township residents.

While marijuana use was legalized in New Jersey, state lawmakers left it up to each town to decide if they wanted to ban or limit the number of dispensaries locally.

There is a 180-day deadline on this decision, so the town must choose how to act in relation to the new state legislation by August 21. If the town opts in, it will be bound to this decision for five years, but if it opts out then the decision can be reversed at any moment.

Municipalities that opt-in can also collect a local cannabis tax that cannot exceed 2% for cannabis cultivator, manufacturer, and retailer, and 1% for wholesalers.

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Towns like Westfield, Hackettstown, and Cranford are leaning towards a ban, citing the short time allotted for the decision and the fact that it can be reversed as some of the reasons, while Morristown officials have at least considered allowing medical and recreational dispensaries in a limited capacity.

According to a minute from the Randolph April meeting, a very clear majority of people voicing their opinions were in favor of allowing marijuana businesses in town.

Some who spoke out were medical marijuana users, others were growers or sellers interested in getting into the business, and a few expressing concerns about corporate cannabis taking control of the market in other areas if smaller businesses were not allowed to operate.

A few people also stated that on a town level, around 68 percent of Randolph residents voted for recreational legalization. County-wide, that number was 64.7 percent, in Morris.