Cumberland County Cannabis – Is It Legal & Where To Buy 2024

Is Cannabis Cultivation Legal in Cumberland County?

Licensed cannabis cultivation for both medical and recreational use is legal in the State of New Jersey. The 2019 Jake Honig Compassionate Use Medical Cannabis Act expanded the 2010 Compassionate Use Medical Marijuana Act (CUMMA) in legalizing medical cannabis in the state. The Cannabis Regulatory, Enforcement Assistance, and Marketplace Modernization (CREAMM) Act, approved on February 22, 2021, legalized the recreational use of cannabis for people with a minimum age of 21. In Cumberland County, 35,636 residents voted for the CREAMM Act while 17,632 voted against it. Nevertheless, since municipalities are allowed to choose whether or not to allow certain types of medical or recreational cannabis businesses, licensed medical or recreational cannabis cultivation is legal only in Cumberland County municipalities that allow them.

The following seven out of 14 Cumberland County municipalities have opted out of having any type of cannabis business within their respective jurisdictions:

• Downe Township

• Hopewell Township

• Upper Deerfield Township

• Lawrence Township

• Maurice River Township

• Deerfield Township

• Greenwich Township

The following municipalities opted into having only medical cannabis businesses within their respective territories:

• Fairfield Township

• City of Millville

The following municipalities opted into having both medical and recreational cannabis businesses within their respective areas:

• City of Vineland

• City of Bridgeton

• Commercial Township

The Cannabis Regulatory Commission (CRC) is the state’s licensing body for medical and recreational cannabis and has established the rules covering recreational cannabis. As of May 2023, applications for the Class 1 recreational cannabis cultivator license are open. Applications for medical cannabis businesses, including medical cannabis cultivation businesses, closed in August 2019. As of 2022, there was one licensed medical cannabis cultivation facility located in Cumberland County, in the City of Vineland.

Medical or recreational cannabis cultivation is allowed indoors or outdoors by the CREAMM Act. However, municipalities that permit cultivation may create their own rules on whether to allow indoor or outdoor growing of medical or recreational cannabis.

Is Cannabis Manufacturing Legal in Cumberland County?

The licensed manufacturing of medical or recreational cannabis products in Cumberland County is legal only in municipalities that permit it, in accordance with the State of New Jersey’s CREAMM Act.

Applications to the CRC for the Class 2 recreational cannabis manufacturer license are open as of May 2023. Applications for the medical cannabis manufacturing license have been closed since August 2019.

Recreational cannabis manufacturing must be done indoors in an enclosed and locked facility. Recreational cannabis products are subject to the following restrictions:

• Inhalable cannabis products must contain a maximum of 7.09 grams or one-fourth ounce of cannabis or the equivalent in every package

• Ingestible cannabis products must contain a maximum of 100 milligrams of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) or the equivalent in every package.

• A single serving of any cannabis product must contain a maximum of 10 milligrams of THC or the equivalent

Is Cannabis Retail Legal in Cumberland County?

The licensed retail selling in Cumberland County of medical or recreational cannabis and cannabis products is legal only in the municipalities that welcome it, as stipulated by the CREAMM Act of the State of New Jersey.

Licensed medical cannabis dispensaries are only allowed to sell to medical cannabis cardholders the purchase limit of medical cannabis and medical cannabis products. Each cardholder may only purchase a maximum of 84 grams of cannabis or its equivalent every 30 days. Medical cannabis cardholders who are terminally ill have no purchase limit.

Licensed recreational cannabis retailers are allowed to sell recreational cannabis and recreational cannabis products to people with a minimum age of 21 who can present a valid ID with their date of birth, as well as medical cannabis and medical cannabis products to medical marijuana cardholders. Each qualified consumer with no medical cannabis card has a purchase limit of 28.35 grams of cannabis per transaction. That is equivalent to any of the following:

• 1 ounce of cannabis

• 4 grams of cannabis in solid concentrate or resin form

• 4 grams of liquid cannabis concentrate

• 4 grams of cannabis oil or vaporized product

• 1,000 milligrams of cannabis products

Licensed medical cannabis dispensaries and recreational cannabis retailers are allowed to sell cannabis and cannabis products such as dried flowers, oils, concentrates, resins, extracts, tinctures, and ingestable forms such as pills, capsules, tablets, chewable items, and syrups. Edible cannabis products that are food-based, such as baked products, are not allowed. Cannabis products, including vape products, must not contain additives that are hazardous to the health of users.

Applications to the CRC for the Class 5 recreational cannabis retailer license are open as of May 2023. Applications for the medical cannabis dispensary license have been closed since August 2019. As of May 2023, there is one licensed retail facility selling both medical and recreational cannabis in Cumberland County, in the City of Vineland.

Is Cannabis Delivery Legal in Cumberland County?

The establishment of CRC-licensed cannabis delivery services for medical or recreational cannabis and cannabis products in Cumberland County is legal only in the municipalities that allow it, according to the CREAMM Act of the State of New Jersey. Municipalities, however, may not ban the licensed delivery of medical or recreational cannabis and cannabis products from another municipality to their residents.

Existing licensed medical cannabis dispensaries or the licensed cannabis delivery services they work with may only deliver medical cannabis and medical cannabis products to medical cannabis cardholders. Licensed recreational cannabis retailers or the licensed cannabis delivery services they work with may deliver recreational cannabis and recreational cannabis products to people with a minimum age of 21, as well as medical cannabis and medical cannabis products to medical cannabis cardholders.

How to Get a Medical Marijuana Card in Cumberland County

To acquire a medical cannabis card, Cumberland County residents must be certified by a doctor registered with the New Jersey Medicinal Cannabis Program (NJMCP) to have one of the illnesses qualified for medical cannabis treatment. As of May 2023, there are 12 NJMCP-registered health practitioners in Cumberland County but only two are still accepting new patients.

The medical conditions included in the program are the following:

• Terminal illness with a prognosis of less than a year

• Anxiety

• Tourette Syndrome

• Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

• Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)

• Cancer

• Seizure disorders

• Dysmenorrhea

• Positive Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV)

• Chronic pain

• Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS)

• Glaucoma

• Opioid Use Disorder

• Intractable skeletal muscular spasticity

• Multiple sclerosis

• Muscular dystrophy

• Migraine

• Inflammatory bowel diseases

The doctor will provide the patient with an Authorizing Provider Statement, a registry ID number, and a reference ID number. With these, the patient will be able to register online on the NJMCP portal and complete the application. A photo taken within the previous 60 days and a current New Jersey state-issued ID as proof of residence are required. If the patient has no state ID, two different documents showing proof of state residency are required.

After the online form is submitted, the patient will receive an email with instructions on the payment of the $50 fee. This may be lowered to $20 upon submission of proof of being any of the following:

• A senior citizen at least 65 years old

• A military veteran

• A beneficiary of NJ Medicaid

• A beneficiary of the NJ Temporary Disability Insurance (TDI)

• A beneficiary of Medicare

• A beneficiary of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)

• A beneficiary of Social Security Disability (SSD)

• A beneficiary of Supplemental Security Income (SSI)

If the patient is a minor, a parent or legal guardian must act as the primary caregiver and register the patient online. A caregiver medical cannabis card will be issued to the parent or legal guardian of a minor free of charge.

An adult patient may likewise appoint a maximum of two caregivers to assist in purchasing medical cannabis. An adult patient’s caregiver needs to register online with the same process and fees as a patient.

The medical cannabis card of the patient or caregiver will be sent by mail. Its validity period is two years.

Non-residents of New Jersey may apply for a six-month nonrenewable medical cannabis card. They must also get certified by an NJMCP-registered doctor in the online registry to get registry reference and ID numbers. With these, they must register online and upload a copy of their medical cannabis card issued by their home state.

Further information may be sought from the following:

Medicinal Cannabis Program Patient Services

Phone: 609-292-0424

Email: medcannabis@crc.nj.gov

How Has Cannabis Legalization Impacted the Economy of Cumberland County?

Municipalities in Cumberland County that allow recreational cannabis businesses may levy the following maximum transfer taxes:

• 2% for every sale made by a licensed recreational cannabis cultivator

• 2% for every sale made by a licensed recreational cannabis manufacturer

• 2% for every sale made by a licensed recreational cannabis retailer

• 1% for every sale made by a licensed recreational cannabis wholesaler

In addition, the municipality must accompany the transfer tax with a use tax of the same percentage for recreational cannabis businesses with two or more business sites even if the other site is in another municipality. Every transfer of cannabis from one site to another must be subject to the use tax.

The State of New Jersey imposes a sales tax of 6.625% on retail sales of recreational cannabis and recreational cannabis products. As of July 1, 2022, sales taxes on retail sales of medical cannabis and medical cannabis products have been removed.

Additionally, licensed recreational cannabis cultivators must pay a Social Equity Excise Fee (SEEF) on every sale of recreational cannabis to licensed manufacturers, wholesalers, and retailers. As of January 1, 2023, the rate of the SEEF was $1.52 for every ounce of cannabis.

The CRC announced that on the first day of recreational cannabis retail sales in the state on April 21, 2022, licensed recreational cannabis retailers statewide reached almost $1.9 million in gross sales.

The Effects of Cannabis Legalization on Crime Rates in Cumberland County

Medical cannabis was first legalized in Cumberland County in 2010, and recreational cannabis was legalized in certain municipalities only in 2021.

Data submitted by the Cumberland County Sheriff's Office to the FBI’s Crime Explorer page shows that in 2010, there were five marijuana offense arrests, comprised of four arrests for possession and one arrest for sales.

In 2011, which was the year after the legalization of medical cannabis, there were 12 marijuana offense arrests, comprised of 11 arrests for possession and one arrest for sales.

In 2018, there were four marijuana offense arrests, comprised of three arrests for possession and one arrest for sales.

In 2020, which is the latest available data, there were two marijuana offense arrests, both for sales.

The number of DUI arrests was as follows in those years:

• 2010: no data

• 2011: 1 arrest

• 2018: 1 arrest

• 2020: 1 arrest