The incoming Speaker of the New Jersey Assembly has yet to indicate whether or not he supports legal marijuana.
Speaking at a news conference after he was voted in on Monday, Craig Coughlin, a member of the Assembly since 2010, said he wants to make sure it makes sense before he decides. “As with any bill — particularly any bill that would create something new — I think the devil is really in the details. And I think we need to understand it in its totality.” He added:
Even if we’re going to do it, I want to make sure the bill is the right bill.
Legalizing marijuana is a focus of Governor-elect Phil Murphy, a fellow Democrat.
Murphy, who promises to legalize and tax cannabis, will succeed Republican Chris Christie in January. (Christie has gone on record referring to legal marijuana as a “gateway drug.”). If Murphy has his way, he says legalizing pot will bring in more than $300 million a year in tax revenue.
According to NJ.com, Coughlin doesn’t necessarily oppose legalizing marijuana, he just wants Assembly leaders to fully examine all proposals before they make a decision, and to “have people at the end of the day say, ‘They really thought about this stuff. They paid attention to it.'”
As to whether or not he thinks legalizing marijuana will combat the country’s opioid addiction epidimic, he said:
There are gonna be arguments on both sides of what the effect of legalizing marijuana is. I think in order to determine whether that’s right and best in the state of New Jersey, we need to hear those arguments, right? I think that’s why we have committee hearings.
Coughlin will be sworn in January 9, replacing current democratic Speaker Vincent Prieto.
