Bill Text: NJ SCR104 | 2020-2021 | Regular Session | Introduced

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Bill Title: Urges states to support cannabis equity programs.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-03-16 - Introduced in the Senate, Referred to Senate Judiciary Committee [SCR104 Detail]

Download: New_Jersey-2020-SCR104-Introduced.html

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SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION No. 104

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

219th LEGISLATURE

 

INTRODUCED MARCH 16, 2020

 

 

Sponsored by:

Senator  RONALD L. RICE

District 28 (Essex)

 

 

 

 

SYNOPSIS

     Urges states to support cannabis equity programs.

 

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

     As introduced.

  

A Concurrent Resolution urging states to support cannabis equity programs.

 

Whereas, Thirty-three states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and Guam have all adopted laws allowing legal access to cannabis; and

Whereas, Eleven states and the District of Columbia have adopted laws allowing for the adult recreational use of cannabis; and

Whereas, Over 650,000 Americans were arrested for cannabis-related offenses in 2017, and 90 percent of those were arrested for mere possession; and

Whereas, The burdens of arrests, convictions, and long-term collateral consequences arising from a conviction fell disproportionately on Black and Latino populations because cannabis was illegal; and

Whereas, People who are Black or Latino make up nearly 47 percent of those arrested for drug law violations despite making up 31.5 percent of the American population; and

Whereas, Drug arrests and convictions have had a devastating impact on communities across the United States, particularly in communities of color; and

Whereas, Persons convicted of drug-related offenses and their families suffer the long-term consequences; and

Whereas, Black and Latino individuals have a more difficult time entering newly created adult-use cannabis markets, due in part, to a lack of access to capital, business space, technical support and regulatory compliance assistance; and

Whereas, Only six states currently recognize social equity within the regulated cannabis industry and offer programs or support for cannabis equity; and

Whereas, Cannabis equity programs are necessary to reduce barriers to entering the cannabis industry for persons and communities most impacted; and

Whereas, Cannabis equity programs provide a wide range of services and resources such as technical assistance between state and local governments, financial support, priority processing of licenses, licensing fee waivers and deferrals, and other help for owners and employers from communities most harmed by the decades long war on drugs; and

Whereas, Cannabis equity programs help ensure that business ownership and employment are diverse, reflective of the local demographics and inclusive to all; and

Whereas, Support for local equity programs will not only help diversify the emerging cannabis market, it will also improve the growth of small businesses and directly benefit low-income, disadvantaged communities; and

Whereas, While some states prioritize social equity within the cannabis industry, there is still a critical need for further assistance to those faced with the greatest challenges to licensure and the legalized, regulated market; and

Whereas, Cannabis equity programs increase public health and safety by encouraging individuals and groups that have been or may be operating illegally to enter the regulated marketplace; and

Whereas, Cannabis equity programs will increase the opportunities for more individuals to participate and contribute to their state and local economies' legal market, and support owners and operators so they have a chance to sustain a successful business; now, therefore,

 

     Be It Resolved by the Senate of the State of New Jersey (the General Assembly concurring):

 

     1.    The New Jersey Senate urges all states that have legalized cannabis in some form to support cannabis equity programs.

 

     2.    Copies of this resolution, as filed with the Secretary of State, shall be transmitted by the Clerk of the General Assembly or the Secretary of the Senate to the President of the United States Senate, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, each member of Congress elected thereto from New Jersey and the presiding officer of each house of each state legislature in the United States.

 

 

STATEMENT

 

     This concurrent resolution urges all states that have legalized cannabis in some form to support cannabis equity programs.