NEW JERSEY (KYW Newsradio) — New Jersey’s marijuana marketplace isn’t growing fast enough, according to a new report from New Jersey Cannabis Trade Association.
They say regulation is the reason.
More than two years after the first recreational marijuana sales, the state has just shy of 50 dispensaries. Todd Johnson, with NJCTA, says it should be closer to 100 by now at the very least.
“The sales numbers in New Jersey are far off what expectations were.”
He says New Jersey was supposed to be a billion-dollar market because of its population and proximity to cities like Philadelphia and New York.
Instead, Johnson says sales are higher in smaller states, like Maryland, which has 101 dispensaries, and Arizona, which is in its second year of sales and has around 2 million fewer residents than Jersey. Johnson says Arizona will collect nearly $200 million more than New Jersey in tax revenue this year.
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“We just want to bring attention to the fact that things are moving much slower than anyone could have predicted.”
Johnson says the Cannabis Regulatory Commission is holding up development.
“Operators should not have to wait for a board meeting to get operational.”
He says approvals should come from the field monitor rather than a committee hearing, which sometimes takes six or eight weeks to be scheduled.
Cannabis Regulatory Commission officials say high prices, which are controlled by trade association members, have helped keep tax revenue down. They hope association members heed the call for more competition and lower prices.
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