TRENTON, N.J., Jan. 11 (UPI) -- Both houses of the New Jersey Legislature Monday approved a measure allowing medical marijuana use and the governor has said he will sign the bill.
The Assembly approved the bill 48-14 and the Senate voted 25-13 in favor, The (Newark, N.J.) Star-Ledger reported. Gov. Jon Corzine has said he would sign the measure before leaving office Jan. 19, the newspaper said.
The "Compassionate Use Medical Marijuana" bill is scheduled to take effect in six months. While it would make New Jersey the 14th state to legalize the use of marijuana for medical purposes, its backers said during the legislative debate it would be the toughest medical marijuana law in the United States, the newspaper said.
New Jersey residents would not be permitted to cultivate their own marijuana and criminal background checks would be required for designated care givers to acquire pot on behalf of severely ill patients.
One of the measure's sponsors, Assemblyman Reed Gusciora, said New Jersey should not "make criminals out of our very sick and terminally ill."
"It does not make sense for many of New Jersey's residents to suffer when there is a viable way to ease their pain," Gusciora said. "But this is a responsible bill with enough oversight to prevent the abuses that have been reported in other states."
An opponent of the measure, Assemblyman John Rooney, said there were "too many loopholes."
"There are other drugs," he said. "There are many ways to relieve pain."
