Steven Hawkins, executive director of the Marijuana Policy Project, a national organization focused on legalizing cannabis, said the potential range of taxes would either make New Jersey the state with the lowest marijuana taxes — or the highest. At 15 percent, South Dakota’s tax rate is the lowest of any of the 11 states where recreational sales are already legal, while Washington State is the highest with a 37 percent base tax.

"We’re at 15 (states that have legalized adult use) now, and it’s not outside the realm of possibility that we can be at 25 states," said Steve Hawkins, MPP's executive director.

"It is great news that Governor Northam has embraced legalization. We hope that he and the General Assembly will pass a thoughtful and equitable cannabis law next year,” said Olivia Naugle, MPP's legislative analyst.

"With 68 percent support nationwide and successful voter initiatives passed in conservative states like South Dakota and Montana, there’s no good reason why Rhode Island shouldn’t be able to pass legalization in 2021," said Jared Moffat, MPP's campaigns coordinator.

"The Biden Administration can work with Congress, and this isn’t a heavy lift, to give assurance that law enforcement will not go after businesses in states that have legalized cannabis," said Steve Hawkins, MPP's executive director.

"The federal government really just needs to stop becoming a hindrance. This is not a bipartisan issue, the culture war on cannabis is over," said Chris Lindsey, MPP's director of government relations.

"We've waged a war against this plant for a century and by any reasonable metric, that war has been an abject failure," said Matthew Schweich, deputy director of the Marijuana Policy Project, which favors legalization. "All it's done is incarcerate millions of Americans, it has perpetuated racism in this country, and perhaps the worst injustice of all is that it's deprived us of medical marijuana research."

"We’ve waged a war against this plant for a century and by any reasonable metric, that war has been an abject failure. All it’s done is incarcerate millions of Americans, it has perpetuated racism in this country, and perhaps the worst injustice of all is that it’s deprived us of medical marijuana research," said Matthew Schweich, MPP's deputy director.

"If we 'legalize' but still put more or less the same people in jail for cannabis-related activity, we haven't really achieved our goal of ending prohibition," said Chris Lindsey, MPP's director of government relations.

"The message that has resonated with voters in all five states was the fact that marijuana legalization is a proven policy and worked successfully in other states. Eleven states had legalized marijuana in the lead up to Election Day, and none of those states have repealed legalization," said Matthew Schweich, MPP's deputy director.