Rutgers Law

New Jersey Statutes, Title: 24, FOOD AND DRUGS

    Chapter 6I:

      Section: 24:6I-21: Municipalities may authorize consumption areas.

          28. a. A municipality may authorize, through the enactment of an ordinance, the operation of locally endorsed cannabis consumption areas:

(1) operated by medical cannabis dispensaries, including any alternative treatment centers deemed to hold a medical cannabis dispensary permit pursuant to section 7 of P.L.2009, c.307 (C.24:6I-7), and clinical registrants within its jurisdiction, at which areas the on-premises consumption of medical cannabis may occur;

(2) operated by cannabis retailers within its jurisdiction, at which areas the on-premises consumption of personal use cannabis may occur; and (3) operated by medical cannabis dispensaries, including any alternative treatment centers deemed to hold a medical cannabis dispensary permit pursuant to section 7 of P.L.2009, c.307 (C.24:6I-7), within its jurisdiction that are also deemed to have, pursuant to that section, one or more Class 5 Cannabis Retailer licenses and for which the commission has correspondingly issued one or more licenses following receipt of the municipality's and commission's approval to operate as a cannabis retailer pursuant to subparagraph (a) of paragraph (3) of subsection a. of section 33 of P.L.2021, c.16 (C.24:6I-46), or medical cannabis dispensaries and alternative treatment centers otherwise issued a license by the commission pursuant to P.L.2021, c.16 (C.24:6I-31 et al.), to simultaneously operate as a cannabis retailer, at which areas the on-premises consumption of both medical cannabis and personal use cannabis items may occur.

b. Applications for an endorsement pursuant to this section shall be made to the commission in a form and manner as shall be prescribed by the commission and shall set forth such information as the commission may require. Each application shall be verified by the oath or affirmation of such persons as the commission may prescribe. The endorsement shall be conditioned upon approval by a municipality. An applicant is prohibited from operating a cannabis consumption area without State and local approval. If the applicant does not receive approval from the municipality within one year after the date of State approval, the State endorsement shall expire and may not be renewed. If an application is denied by the municipality or the approval of the municipality is revoked, the commission shall revoke the State endorsement. Any person aggrieved by the local denial of an endorsement application may request a hearing in the Superior Court of the county in which the application was filed. The request for a hearing shall be filed within 30 days after the date the application was denied. The person shall serve a copy of the person's request for a hearing upon the appropriate officer for the municipality that denied the application. The hearing shall be held and a record made thereof within 30 days after the receipt of the application for a hearing. No formal pleading and no filing fee shall be required for the hearing.

c. (1) The commission shall deny a State endorsement if the premises on which the applicant proposes to conduct its business does not meet the requirements of P.L.2009, c.307 (C.24:6I-1 et al.) or P.L.2021, c.16 (C.24:6I-31 et al.), as applicable, or for reasons set forth in this section. The commission may revoke or deny an initial endorsement, an endorsement renewal, or reinstatement, for good cause.

(2) For purposes of this subsection "good cause" means:

(a) the endorsed permit holder, license holder, or applicant has violated, does not meet, or has failed to comply with, any of the terms, conditions, or provisions of this section, any rules or regulations promulgated pursuant to this section, or any supplemental local laws, rules, or regulations;

(b) the endorsed permit holder, license holder, or applicant has failed to comply with any special terms or conditions that were placed on its endorsement by the commission or municipality; or

(c) the premises have been operated in a manner that adversely affects the public health or the safety of the immediate neighborhood in which the consumption area is located.

(3) Any commission decision made pursuant to this subsection shall be considered a final agency decision for the purposes of the "Administrative Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.) and may be subject to judicial review as provided in the Rules of Court.

d. A cannabis consumption area endorsement shall be valid for one year and may be renewed annually, subject to the approval of the commission and the municipality as set forth in this section. The commission shall establish by regulation the amount of the application fee and renewal fee for the endorsement, which shall not exceed the administrative cost for processing and reviewing the application.

e. The commission shall maintain a list of all cannabis consumption areas in the State and shall make the list available on its Internet website.

f. A cannabis consumption area shall be located on the premises of a medical cannabis dispensary, clinical registrant, or cannabis retailer, may be indoors or outdoors, and shall be designated by conspicuous signage. The signage shall also indicate whether the cannabis consumption area may be used for the on-premises consumption of medical cannabis, personal use cannabis items, or both.

(1) (a) An indoor cannabis consumption area in which medical cannabis may be consumed, or both medical cannabis and personal use cannabis may be consumed, shall be a structurally enclosed area within a medical cannabis dispensary or clinical registrant facility that is separated by solid walls or windows from the area in which medical cannabis is dispensed, or in which retail sales of cannabis items occur if the dispensary or facility is also licensed as a cannabis retailer, shall only be accessible through an interior door after first entering the dispensary or facility, and for a dispensary or facility that is also licensed as a cannabis retailer, with respect to any smoking, vaping, or aerosolizing of personal use cannabis items, the consumption area shall comply with all ventilation requirements applicable to cigar lounges, as that term is defined in section 3 of P.L.2005, c.383 (C.26:3D-57), in order to permit indoor smoking, vaping, or aerosolizing that is the equivalent of smoking tobacco not in violation of the "New Jersey Smoke-Free Air Act," P.L.2005, c.383 (C.26:3D-55 et seq.). Nothing in this subparagraph shall be construed to authorize the consumption of medical cannabis by smoking, vaping, or aerosolizing in this or any other indoor public place or workplace, as those terms are defined in section 3 of P.L.2005, c.383 (C.26:3D-57).

(b) An indoor cannabis consumption area in which only personal use cannabis items may be consumed shall be a structurally enclosed area within a cannabis retailer that is separated by solid walls or windows from the area in which retail sales of cannabis items occur, shall only be accessible through an interior door after first entering the retailer, and shall comply with all ventilation requirements applicable to cigar lounges, as that term is defined in section 3 of P.L.2005, c.383 (C.26:3D-57), in order to permit indoor smoking, vaping, or aerosolizing that is the equivalent of smoking tobacco not in violation of the "New Jersey Smoke-Free Air Act," P.L.2005, c.383 (C.26:3D-55 et seq.).

(2) An outdoor cannabis consumption area shall be an exterior structure on the same premises as the medical cannabis dispensary, clinical registrant facility, or cannabis retailer, that is either separate from or connected to the dispensary, facility, or retailer, and that is not required to be completely enclosed, but shall have sufficient walls, fences, or other barriers to prevent any view of patients consuming medical cannabis or persons consuming personal use cannabis items within the consumption area from any sidewalk or other pedestrian or non-motorist right-of-way, as the case may be.

A medical cannabis dispensary, clinical registrant, or cannabis retailer operating a consumption area shall ensure that any smoking, vaping, or aerosolizing of medical cannabis or personal use cannabis items that occurs in an outdoor cannabis consumption area does not result in migration, seepage, or recirculation of smoke or other exhaled material to any indoor public place or workplace as those terms are defined in section 3 of P.L.2005, c.383 (C.26:3D-57). The commission may require an outdoor consumption area to include any ventilation features as the commission deems necessary and appropriate.

g. (1) A medical cannabis dispensary, clinical registrant, or cannabis retailer holding a cannabis consumption area endorsement, and the employees thereof, subject to any regulations for cannabis consumption areas promulgated by the commission, may permit a person to bring medical cannabis or personal use cannabis items into a cannabis consumption area, so long as the on-premises consumption of that cannabis is authorized by the endorsement.

(2) A medical cannabis dispensary, clinical registrant, or cannabis retailer holding a cannabis consumption area endorsement shall not sell alcohol, including fermented malt beverages or malt, vinous, or spirituous liquor, sell tobacco or nicotine products, or allow the consumption of alcohol, tobacco, or nicotine products on the premises, or operate as a retail food establishment.

(3) A medical cannabis dispensary, clinical registrant, or cannabis retailer holding a cannabis consumption area endorsement shall not allow on-duty employees of the establishment to consume any medical cannabis or personal use cannabis items in the consumption area, other than an on-duty employee who is a registered qualifying patient with a valid authorization for the use of medical cannabis, if the medical cannabis dispensary, clinical registrant, or cannabis retailer does not otherwise provide a private area, that is separate from the area in which medical cannabis is dispensed or in which retail sales of cannabis items occur, for that employee to use medical cannabis.

(4) (a) A cannabis retailer, or medical cannabis dispensary or clinical registrant that is also licensed to simultaneously operate as a cannabis retailer, shall limit the amount of personal use cannabis items sold to a person to be consumed in its consumption area, or brought into its consumption area if permitted pursuant to paragraph (1) of this subsection, to no more than the sales limit set by the commission. The cannabis retailer, medical cannabis dispensary, or clinical registrant shall not engage in multiple sales transactions of personal use cannabis items to the same person during the same business day when a retailer's, dispensary's, or registrant's employee knows or reasonably should have known that the sales transaction would result in the person possessing more than the sales limit established by the commission. The cannabis retailer, medical cannabis dispensary, or clinical registrant shall provide, if required by the commission, information regarding the safe consumption of personal use cannabis items at the point of sale to all persons who make a purchase.

(b) All employees of a cannabis retailer, or medical cannabis dispensary or clinical registrant that is also licensed to simultaneously operate as a cannabis retailer, shall complete any responsible vendor training program established in regulation by the commission concerning consumption areas in which personal use cannabis items may be consumed.

h. (1) Access to a cannabis consumption area in which medical cannabis may be consumed shall be restricted to employees of the medical cannabis dispensary or clinical registrant and to registered qualifying patients and their designated caregivers.

(2) Access to a cannabis consumption area in which personal use cannabis items may be consumed, or both medical cannabis and personal use cannabis items may be consumed, shall be restricted to employees of the cannabis retailer, or medical cannabis dispensary or clinical registrant that is also licensed to simultaneously operate as a cannabis retailer, and to registered qualifying patients, their designated caregivers, and other persons who are at least 21 years of age. Each person shall be required to produce a form of government-issued identification that may be accepted, pursuant to subparagraph (a) of paragraph (6) of subsection a. of section 18 of P.L.2021, c.16 (C.24:6I-35), in order to enter the consumption area for purposes of consuming any medical cannabis or personal use cannabis items.

i. When a patient or other person leaves a cannabis consumption area, the medical cannabis dispensary, clinical registrant, or cannabis retailer shall ensure any remaining unconsumed medical cannabis or personal use cannabis item that is not taken by the patient, the patient's designated caregiver, or other person is destroyed.

j. A medical cannabis dispensary, clinical registrant, or cannabis retailer operating a cannabis consumption area and its employees:

(1) shall operate the dispensary, registrant, or retailer in a decent, orderly, and respectable manner;

(2) may remove an individual from its premises for any reason;

(3) shall not knowingly permit any activity or acts of disorderly conduct; and

(4) shall not permit rowdiness, undue noise, or other disturbances or activity offensive to the average citizen or to the residents of the neighborhood in which the consumption area is located.

k. If an emergency requires law enforcement, firefighters, emergency medical services providers, or other public safety personnel to enter a cannabis consumption area, employees of the medical cannabis dispensary, clinical registrant, or cannabis retailer shall prohibit on-site consumption of medical cannabis, personal use cannabis items, or both, as the case may be, until such personnel have completed their investigation or services and have left the premises.

L.2019, c.153, s.28; amended 2021, c.16, s.32.

This section added to the Rutgers Database: 2021-05-04 15:55:09.

Older versions of 24:6I-21 (if available):

Court decisions that cite this statute: CLICK HERE.