Asbury Park Resolution to Legalize Marijuana for Adults in New Jersey

City of Asbury Park
County of Monmouth
State of New Jersey

IN SUPPORT OF LEGALIZING, TAXING AND REGULATING MARIJUANA FOR ADULTS.

WHEREAS, New Jersey law currently makes possession by adults of small amounts of marijuana illegal; and

WHEREAS, based upon information available to the City of Asbury Park (the “City”), someone is arrested for marijuana possession in the State of New Jersey (the “State”) every 24 minutes, totaling more than 21,000 possession arrests each year; and

WHEREAS, based upon information available to the City, the State spent over an estimated one billion dollars in the last decade on enforcement of marijuana possession laws; and

WHEREAS, the Mayor and Council of the City believe that the existing laws concerning small amounts of marijuana waste the enforcement resources of police, prosecutors and courts that could be better spent on keeping the City safe from serious crime; and

WHEREAS, based upon information available to the City, minorities in the State are nearly three times more likely to be arrested for marijuana possession than Caucasians, despite similar rates of marijuana use; and

WHEREAS, based upon information available to the City, an arrest for a single marijuana cigarette in the State can lead to up to six months in jail, loss of a job, a driver’s license suspension, up to $1,225 in fees and fines, immigration consequences, loss of student financial aid, and eviction; and

WHEREAS, based upon information available to the City, despite the prohibition of marijuana and the approximately 800,000 marijuana possession arrests that occur in the United States each year, federal government data estimates that 111 million Americans have tried marijuana and more than 30 million Americans use marijuana each year; and

WHEREAS, based upon information available to the City, in 2014 the New Jersey State Municipal Prosecutors Association, whose members are primarily responsible for prosecuting marijuana possession arrests, voted to publicly support the legalization of marijuana, subject to reasonable regulations; and

WHEREAS, based upon information available to the City, the editorial boards of the New York Times, Star-Ledger, Times of Trenton, and Daily Targum have endorsed the legalization, taxation and regulation of marijuana; and

WHEREAS, based upon information available to the City, the State could potentially receive hundreds of millions of dollars per year in new revenue from the taxation of regulated marijuana sales; and

WHEREAS, the Mayor and Council of the City believe that tax revenue can be used to reinvest in our communities, schools, drug prevention and education programs, re-entry and job training programs and in programs to strengthen community-police relations; and

WHEREAS, the Mayor and Council of the City believe that regulating marijuana in a State-controlled system will limit access to marijuana to adults aged 21 and over in licensed locations; and

WHEREAS, the Mayor and Council of the City believe that regulation will ensure strict controls over marijuana advertising, labeling, and quality, preventing access to youth and controlling quality and potency; and

WHEREAS, the Mayor and Council of the City recognize that driving under the influence of marijuana will remain illegal in the State, and regulating marijuana will not change that; and

WHEREAS, the Mayor and Council of the City are aware that marijuana has been legalized, taxed, and regulated in the States of Colorado, Washington, Alaska, and Oregon, as well as in Washington D.C.

NOW, THEREFORE, BE AND IT IS HEREBY RESOLVED, by the Mayor and Council of the City of Asbury Park, in the County of Monmouth and State of New Jersey, as follows:

1. That the Mayor and Council of the City hereby support fair and effective criminal justice and drug policies; and

2. That the Mayor and Council of the City hereby urge the New Jersey State Legislature to pass, and the Governor to sign, legislation to legalize, tax and regulate marijuana for adults; and

3. That a certified copy of this Resolution shall be provided to each of the following:

a. Members of the New Jersey General Assembly;
b. Members of the New Jersey State Senate;
c. Office of the Governor;
d. Anthony Nuccio, Acting City Manager;
e. Deputy Police Chief Anthony Salerno;
f. Frederick C. Raffetto, Esq., Municipal Attorney.

I, CINDY A. DYE, City Clerk of the City of Asbury Park, Monmouth County, New Jersey, DO HEREBY CERTIFY the foregoing to be a true and exact copy of RESOLUTION NO. 2015-XX, which was finally adopted by the City Council at a meeting held on the 8th day of July, 2015.

CERTIFIED BY ME THIS _______ DAY OF _____________, 2015.

______________________________
CINDY A. DYE
CITY CLERK

Record of Council Vote on Final Passage
COUNCIL PERSON AYE NAY N.V
Mayor John Moor
Deputy Mayor Amy Quinn
Council Member Yvonne Clayton
Council Member Jesse Kendle
Council Member Joe Woerner

Indicates vote N.V.- Not Voting Abstain