The New Jersey Cannabis Regulatory Commission has voted to keep the Social Equity Excise Fee stable at $2.50 per ounce in the face of a staff recommendation that it be raised to $30 an ounce.

The state fee is attached to recreational cannabis sold by class 1 license holders. The revenue from the fee is used to fund social justice causes in communities disproportionately impacted by drug abuse. The fee is a wholesale tax on cannabis paid by the business owners and is not intended to be paid by consumers.

At a December meeting the commission’s acting executive director, Christopher Riggs, pointed out that the price of cannabis per pound has fallen in New Jersey, and the law allows for an increase in the excise fee when the price falls below a certain level.

Riggs recommended that the commission increase the fee to $30 an ounce. As an indication of price changes, the commission viewed a chart that showed the adult use bud/flower price per gram in October 2024 as $10.98, and in October 2025 as $8.09, a 26% decline.

Earlier in the year Gov. Phil Murphy included a hike in the fee, from $2.50 to $15, to add $70 million in revenue to help balance the state budget. The Legislature stripped it out of the budget when it approved the budget.

The cannabis commission, motivated in part by concern that the added fee on license holders would only end up being passed on to consumers, elected to keep the fee at the 2025 level of $2.50 an ounce. The commission is required to review the fee annually.

Riggs also noted that several new cannabis dispensaries have opened in the state, bringing the number of such businesses to 394. This has translated into a 12.4% increase in sales, with total revenue from the fourth quarter of 2024 through through the third quarter of 2025 at $1.17 billion.

By county, Cape May accounts for 1% of total statewide sales, with Camden County leading the list with a 12.4% share.

The commission announced that it will hold town hall meetings on the excise tax this month, with the feedback to be used in a report to the governor and the Legislature. The hearings will be virtual and will focus on how the state should allocate the fee revenue.

The hearing for the state’s southern region will be Thursday, Jan. 29, from 2 to 3 p.m. Members of the public can register to speak or submit written comments through the CRC website.

Contact the reporter, Vince Conti, at vconti@cmcherald.com.