Governor Phil Murphy • Lt. Governor Tahesha Way

Cannabis Regulatory Commission

Social Equity In Cannabis

The role of this office (also referred to as the NJ-CRC’s Office of Diversity and Inclusion) is to establish practices and procedures for promoting inclusion of diverse populations in the medicinal and recreational cannabis industries. On top of promoting participation, this office aims to implement programs and other initiatives that can promote equitable inclusion. Visit the Diversity & Inclusion page for more information about its role and the resources it offers.

Under the CREAMM Act, the Social Equity Excise Fee (SEEF) is collected from cannabis cultivators when they sell or transfer products to any other license class. The SEEF rate may be adjusted annually by the New Jersey Cannabis Regulatory Commission.  The 2024 SEEF rate is $1.24 per ounce. On December 12, 2024, the NJ-CRC Board voted to impose a SEEF rate of $2.50 per ounce for both usable and unusable cannabis used for the purposes of manufacturing for 2025.

The CREAMM Act requires the State to take steps to expunge people’s records for certain marijuana- and hashish-related offenses, including any arrest or conviction records. In addition, the Attorney General issued Directive 2021-1 that instructs state, county, and municipal prosecutors to dismiss pending charges for certain marijuana-related offenses.

The Cannabis Regulatory Commission does not have direct involvement in the expungement process. 

For more information about marijuana expungements, visit the New Jersey Courts website.

For more information about law enforcement and marijuana or cannabis, visit the Office of the Attorney General’s website.

Yes. The Commission cannot use someone’s prior marijuana charges or convictions to disqualify them in the application process. The law does not prohibit people with prior criminal convictions from applying for a recreational cannabis business license.

Criminal records expungement is the purview of the New Jersey Courts, not the NJ-CRC. Some information about automatic expungement of marijuana records is available here.