Tucked inside a nondescript commercial warehouse here sits a sophisticated marijuana-growing operation. A custom filtration system feeds a proprietary cocktail of nutrients into a hydroponic, two-level farming system. Two pallets of crops are harvested every day, and the 15,000 square feet will eventually yield two tons of marijuana per year.

And it’s all legal. Opened just a few weeks ago, Harmony Dispensary is the latest site in New Jersey to provide marijuana for medical use, a program that has expanded greatly since Gov. Philip D. Murphy, a Democrat, was sworn in.

New Jersey did not legalize recreational marijuana as part of the state's newly enacted budget, but Democratic Gov. Phil Murphy and a key lawmaker say it will get done soon.

Advocates of legalization say they're trying to overcome decades of stigma as well as a federal prohibition in an effort to make New Jersey the latest state to legalize cannabis. But they say they remain optimistic that bills will pass the Democrat-led Legislature this year. Opponents point to the legalization effort's slow going as a sign the effort could stall out.

Nine states and the District of Columbia have legalized recreational marijuana.

New Jersey's rush toward legal marijuana has slowed to a crawl.

Gov. Phil Murphy's first 100 days in office came and went without a legal weed bill passing the Legislature. Then, on July 1, Murphy signed a state budget that does not anticipate non-medical marijuana sales in the next year, forcing the administration to strip out $60 million in revenue that it had anticipated from taxes on the drug.

New Jersey's busiest medical marijuana dispensary appears to be ready to get even busier.

Curaleaf, formerly known as Compassionate Sciences, opened a new retail location across the street from its existing location in Bellmawr last month and has entered the planning stage for a 100,000-square-foot, indoor growing facility on a remediated landfill here near an intersection of interstates 295 and 76, company and borough officials said. The new facility would be about the size of two football fields.

New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy's push to legalize recreational cannabis legalization in the Garden State is beginning to take shape.

It's the problem faced by every single marijuana dispensary in the nine states that already sell marijuana for recreational purposes.

The fact is, "legal weed" isn't entirely legal. And if New Jersey legalizes marijuana, it will come with unique challenges  — and solutions — for those looking to find success in cannabis.

The U.S. Department of Justice still considers marijuana a "Schedule 1" drug, a classification that indicates it has no medicinal value, despite 29 states having some kind of medical marijuana program.

The state senator leading the charge on legal weed in New Jersey introduced a new bill Thursday that would bring recreational marijuana to the state while expanding the medical marijuana program.

State Sen. Nicholas Scutari on Thursday unveiled a combined bill that aims to address the two biggest marijuana-related issues in New Jersey: an expansion of medical marijuana and full legalization of weed for adults. Senate President Stephen Sweeney, D-Gloucester, is also a prime sponsor, Scutari said.

More hemp farming is going ahead in Jersey following a successful first trial season. The Environment Department has been looking at diversifying the island's crop pattern, due to the heavy reliance on potato and dairy farming.

Following the move, 2.5 vergees of hemp were grown in a secret location, which has now been revealed as Warwick Farm. The hemp harvested was of good quality, while the crop also gave a seed and oil yield which was "beyond expectation", according to the Environment Department.

Now farmers have started to plant around 260 vergees of hemp across the island. Scott Meadows, who is the Acting Director for Rural Economy, says hemp can be valuable to the island due to its pharmaceutical benefits.

Lawmakers are looking to revamp how tax revenue from legalized cannabis is incorporated into the state budget, following talks between the Democratic administration and Sen. Nicholas Scutari, D-22nd District, an ardent supporter of marijuana legalization.

Gov. Phil Murphy’s administration is currently eyeing a phased-in tax rate for recreational cannabis, according to state Treasury spokesperson Jennifer Sciortino.

The treasury’s newly unveiled revenue projections for 2019, released Monday, showed marijuana revenue lowered by $11 million, to $69 million, rather than the $80 million unveiled in Murphy’s March 2018 budget proposal. The tax rate would be phased in over several years, Sciortino said.

While recreational marijuana is not yet legal in New Jersey, cities and towns are already making plans to either embrace it or prohibit it. To date, 19 municipalities have started the process of regulating cannabis within their borders.

Gov. Phil Murphy is a strong advocate for legalizing recreational marijuana; however, it is going to take a while for lawmakers to reach a consensus. Even Murphy has acknowledged that it may take until the end of the year for a bill to reach his desk.

Local Oversight Over Cannabis