TRENTON, New Jersey — New Jersey liquor stores, bars and cannabis shops that were one day away from having to pull intoxicating hemp drinks off their shelves can keep selling them for at least another month, after Governor Mikie Sherrill signed a bill on Thursday, November 12, that ties the state's sales deadline to the federal one instead of a fixed date that was about to expire.
The law, Senate Bill 4635 and its Assembly companion A5604, replaces the previous cutoff of November 13, 2026 with what the bill calls the federal compliance date — December 11, 2026, or the later date on which the federal government's new, narrower definition of hemp takes effect. The governor's office announced the signing on Thursday morning, and the measure took effect immediately, according to the bill's text and the sponsors.
What the new law actually does
Under the law, businesses licensed by the state Division of Alcoholic Beverage Control and by the Cannabis Regulatory Commission may continue selling intoxicating hemp beverages until the federal compliance date. The bill also states that the compliance date cannot fall earlier than December 11, 2026, even if a federal funding measure lapses — so a shutdown or a funding gap in Washington cannot suddenly shorten New Jersey's window.
The products remain tightly limited while the window stays open. They may be sold only to adults aged 21 and older, cans are capped at 10 milligrams of total THC, larger 750-millilitre bottles are capped at 200 milligrams, and online and vending-machine sales are not allowed, according to the regulatory summaries of the framework the bill extends.
How the bill moved, and who carried it
The bill was sponsored by Senate President Nicholas Scutari, a Democrat, and Assemblymember Robert Karabinchak, a Democrat whose district is in Middlesex County. It passed the Senate 37 to 0 on October 22 and the Assembly 75 to 2 on October 29, with support from both parties, before reaching the governor's desk. Sherrill signed it one day before the November 13 deadline would have forced licensees to stop selling the drinks.
The signing was part of a package of five bills the governor acted on the same day, according to the governor's office announcement cited in coverage of the law. The Cannabis Regulatory Commission and the Division of Alcoholic Beverage Control, whose earlier guidance and orders pointed to the November 13 cutoff, are now expected to update their guidance to match the December date.
Why there were two different deadlines in the first place
The split dates trace back to two layers of law. New Jersey's own hemp framework, enacted in 2025 and amended in May 2026, set November 13, 2026 as the last day licensed businesses could sell intoxicating hemp beverages. Separately, a federal law adopted in 2025 rewrote the federal definition of hemp, so that a beverage with more than 0.4 milligrams of total THC per container will be treated as cannabis rather than hemp once the change takes effect.
Federal implementation then moved. A continuing resolution enacted by Congress in September 2026 delayed most of the federal changes to December 11, leaving New Jersey's earlier November 13 date out of step with Washington's. One category of products — those made with cannabinoids that cannot be produced naturally by the cannabis plant — was still scheduled to be classified as marijuana from November 13 under federal law, a distinction state regulators have flagged in their guidance.
What it means for New Jersey businesses and shoppers
For liquor-store owners and small retailers, the law removes an immediate cliff edge: stock that would have become unsellable on Friday can now be sold through at least December 11, and the window extends automatically if Congress delays the federal date again. New Jersey's drinks industry had warned that the mismatch between the state and federal dates would force stores to dump inventory the federal government still allowed.
Middlesex County, home to one of the largest Indian and Punjabi communities in the United States, has a dense network of independently owned liquor stores and convenience businesses, and the Assembly sponsor of the bill represents a Middlesex district. For those store owners, the practical effect is simple: no product has to be pulled this week, but every licensee still has to plan for a hard stop in December unless Washington moves again.
December 11, 2026 is now the earliest day New Jersey's sales window can close. If Congress delays the federal hemp changes again, New Jersey's deadline moves with it automatically — no new vote in Trenton is needed.
What happens next
After the federal compliance date arrives, a hemp beverage above the 0.4-milligram total THC threshold per container will be treated as cannabis in New Jersey, meaning it can only be sold through the state's licensed cannabis system rather than by liquor licensees. Retailers holding stock after that date would face the penalties and prohibitions set out in the state's hemp act.
The next steps sit with the regulators and with Congress. The Cannabis Regulatory Commission's hemp guidance and the Alcoholic Beverage Control division's orders — one earlier order set a grace period ending November 13 — need to be reissued against the new date, and federal lawmakers will decide in the coming weeks whether December 11 holds or slips again.