| | | | |  | | By Jonathan Custodio | The list of lawmakers on board with barring cannabis use for off-duty law-enforcement officers may be growing. State Sen. Paul Sarlo (D-Bergen), who also is mayor of Wood-Ridge in Bergen County, told POLITICO via text that police officers could face a ban on cannabis consumption, reports POLITICO's Daniel Han. "Because we are such a small town with a total of about 16 [officers], in order to be effective we are considering implementing the ban with the small neighboring communities in southern Bergen County," Sarlo texted. "The departments all rely on one another for backup and support. The same communities took a solidified position on banning sales of recreational weed." Sarlo did not make clear on which towns he's had communications with, though cannabis retail businesses have been banned in several communities neighboring Wood-Ridge, including Wallington, Carlstadt, Moonachie, Lodi and Hasbrouck Heights. Mayors from Jersey City, Bayonne, Kearny and Weehawken have already barred police officers from off-duty cannabis consumption and Newark Mayor Ras Baraka is being urged to do the same by its city council. The concerns around cops using the drug while off the clock have been played out over the past couple of weeks. Because of the marijuana's ability to remain in a user's system well after initial consumption, it can be difficult to detect if a person is under the influence at the moment. Law enforcement officers testing positive for marijuana could also diminish trust or open departments up to lawsuits, critics argue. Legislatively, there could be some hurdles. While Assembly Majority Leader Lee Greenwald (D-Camden) said last week he intends to introduce legislation barring cops from using cannabis while off-duty — a proposal to which Gov. Phil Murphy is "open-minded" — Senate President Nick Scutari said last week he opposes the idea. He cited a "slippery slope" in "regulating people's behavior when they're on their own time."
HAPPY MONDAY AFTERNOON — Hi there, I'm Jonathan Custodio, your Playbook PM author. You can send eastern goldfinch photos to jcustodio@politico.com. We're here with the latest from Trenton and elsewhere as New Jersey moves ahead in the budget process and the Legislature conducts hearings on the governor's spending plan.
|  | WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW TODAY | |
HOW ABOUT THEM APPLES — Murphy announced that that Ireland-based Applegreen will relocate its new U.S. headquarters to Glen Rock in Bergen County, reports New Jersey Globe's Joey Fox. Murphy, in the midst of a trip to France and Ireland to boost business in the Garden State, said the deal will bring a $125 million investment and 100 new jobs, with eight times those positions in years to come. Applegreen operates highway service stations, including 21 in New Jersey, and its representatives liked Bergen County's amenities, according to chief business development officer of Choose NJ, a privately funded economic development organization, Cathy Scangarella. "I cannot wait to see Applegreen settle into its new American home in New Jersey," Murphy said.
… In other Ireland trip news: Murphy and Choose New Jersey President & CEO Wesley Mathews celebrated the signing of three memorandums of understanding between New Jersey and Irish entities. COVID NUMBERS— New Jersey reported 1,275 confirmed Covid-19 cases and three deaths from the virus on Monday. The state's seven-day case average was up 7 percent from a week ago and 131 percent from a month ago. | | ON THE BEATS | | LABOR — Workers in the Hopewell Township Starbucks have voted unanimously to join a union, Workers United. The store will be the first in New Jersey to be unionized. More than 200 Starbucks retail locations have filed paperwork with the National Labor Relations Board to begin the union election process, and 26 Starbucks locations have voted for unionization. Starbucks locations in Hamilton and Summit are in the middle of ongoing elections. "We are incredibly proud of the brave and strong Starbucks workers who voted to join Workers United," Lynne Fox, international president of Workers United, said in a statement. "Our collective success in Hopewell today reflects the power that working people have to demand positive changes from their employers." A spokesperson for Starbucks said that the company is "listening and learning from the partners in these stores as we always do across the country. From the beginning, we've been clear in our belief that we are better together as partners, without a union between us, and that conviction has not changed. We respect our partner's right to organize and are committed to following the NLRB process."
| | Around New Jersey | |
"Bucking activists' 2020 hopes, New Jersey expands its state police," by Gothamist's Matt Katz: "Last week, when New Jersey Democratic Gov. Phil Murphy announced a $9 million expansion of the state police, social justice activists who marched in the streets in 2020 to push for reallocating police funds were left with one question: Why? 'I'm baffled,' said Racquel Romans-Henry, policy director at the New Jersey nonprofit Salvation and Social Justice. 'We saw that in the midst of the protests of 2020, you had elected officials standing with advocates, declaring that they understand there's an issue and something must be done,' she continued. 'And this insistence to put more police on the streets seems to really be a disconnect between what was said then and what we're seeing now.'"
"Social equity in NJ's new cannabis industry lagging, advocates say," by NJ Spotlight News' Taylor Jung: "The opening of recreational marijuana sales last Thursday has widely been celebrated across the state, as many have waited nearly two years for the chance to buy weed legally. But of those 13 medical marijuana dispensaries that were first allowed to open, none appear to be owned by Black and Brown operators — despite the state's often-stated public commitment to racial equity. 'I am seeing a lot of the community…both celebrating an historic moment, but at the same time also waiting to utilize their dollar bills and put them forth to these minority-owned local operators,' said Jessica Gonzalez, an attorney for Hiller PC focusing on state cannabis licenses." "N.J. school district will teach new sex ed standards, but on last day of classes," by NJ Advance Media's Rob Jennings: "A Morris County school district is telling parents that new lessons next year stemming from the state's updated sex education standards will be limited to the last day of classes. East Hanover Superintendent Natalee Bartlett outlined the K-8 district's plans in a letter Tuesday, amid an ongoing statewide controversy over the standards. 'Please know that we will not change our current lesson-planning or curriculum offerings based on the updated standards,' Bartlett wrote in a letter she provided Friday to NJ Advance Media. The district intends to 'loosely interpret the standards,' she wrote." "Two days after saying she wasn't quitting, Gurin resigns," by New Jersey Globe's David Wildstein: "Robin Gurin resigned as Morris County Democratic vice chair on Monday, two days after she insisted that reports of her pending resignation was fake news. The New Jersey Globe first reported that she would resign on Friday. On Saturday, in an email from Kenya , where he was on a mission to protect elephants, Gurin said that she 'did not and will not resign as vice chair.' The New Jersey Globe stood by our original story despite her denial. The embattled vice chair, who took office just ten months ago, resigned on Monday, hours after she returned to the United States. A special election will be held the week of May 9 to replace Gurin and Chip Robinson, who announced on Friday that has stepping down as Democratic county chairman after nearly eight years in office." | | Odds and ends | |
— The Bergen County Bar Association has elected its first Black president.
— New Jersey had the second-highest foreclosure rate in the nation for the first quarter of 2022. — A D-Day veteran from Hunterdon County is planning to return to Normandy for this year's anniversary commemoration. He's 98, and he just got his first passport. — Sixty-four percent of the state's residents say New Jersey is either a good or excellent place to live, according to a Monmouth poll. But 59 percent want to move at some point . — Mercer County Community College has a new president.
| | | | Subscribe to the POLITICO Playbook family Playbook | Playbook PM | California Playbook | California Playbook PM | Florida Playbook | Illinois Playbook | Massachusetts Playbook | New Jersey Playbook | New York Playbook | New York Playbook PM View all our political and policy newsletters | | Follow us | | | | |
Comments
Post a Comment