Christie signed the bill a day after the Assembly gave it final legislative approval. He had vetoed an earlier version, asking lawmakers to remove a paragraph that would have eliminated requirements placed on minors that were not also imposed on adults.
Under the new law, authorized growers can cultivate more than three strains of marijuana, giving them more freedom to grow the less-euphoric varieties that parents want for their children.
The law also allows for marijuana in the form of tablets, capsules, drops or syrups, but only for children, and it maintains a provision in the current law that requires children to see a doctor and psychiatrist to qualify for medical marijuana, at least one of whom must be enrolled in the state’s marijuana physician registry. Adult patients need the approval only of a participating doctor.
