LIHU‘E — Is it high time for legal pot in Hawai‘i?
Legislation to legalize and regulate the sale, consumption and personal cultivation of recreational cannabis passed two state Senate committees last week with amendments, moving the bill two steps closer to becoming law.
If passed, Senate Bill 375 would allow all individuals ages 21 and older to possess, process, transport, purchase, obtain and give away to another adult up to 4 ounces of cannabis. The same allowances would be granted for manufactured cannabis products, such as edibles and concentrates, although those allotted amounts are yet to be determined.
Additionally, adults ages 21 and older would be allowed to grow, harvest and process up to 10 living cannabis plants.
SB 375 would also retroactively expunge all cannabis-related offenses made legal by the bill’s passage.
To oversee the newly formed cannabis industry, SB 375 would establish a dedicated cannabis authority within the state Department of Health.
In the Senate Committee on Health and Human Services, Brenton Awa (R-District 23) was the sole member to vote “no,” while Joy San Buenaventura (D-District 2) voted “aye” and Henry Aquino (D-District 19) voted “aye” with reservations.
“Enacting legislation to legalize adult-use marijuana in Hawai‘i would bring about not just a triumph for individual liberties and reform of the criminal justice system, but it would also create prospects for fresh sources of income and economic advancements in the state,” said San Buenaventura, who is chair of the committee.
“By adopting a conscientious and closely monitored cannabis sector, Hawai‘i has the potential to generate considerable tax revenue and other employment opportunities while also providing support to local farmers and other small-scale enterprises.”
The Senate Committee on Commerce and Consumer Protection also recommended the measure be passed with amendments. One senator, Tim Richards (D-District 4), voted “no,” while Sens. Jarrett Keohokalole (D-District 24) and Carol Fukunaga (D-District 11) voted “aye.”
Interestingly, Awa, who is a member of both committees, also voted “aye” during the commerce committee’s vote, despite voting against the measure in the health committee just moments prior. A supporter of legalizing recreational cannabis, he opposes what he sees as an overly bureaucratic system that SB 375 would create.
However, recognizing that the bill wouldn’t move forward without his support, he opted to pass the measure in the hopes it would be amended before a full Senate vote takes place.
During the committee’s public hearing of the bill, the state Department of Health provided comments to committees expressing reservations about the potential fallout of legalizing recreational cannabis.
“Although SB 375 provides for a strong regulatory structure and education of the industry and the public, the department remains highly concerned about increased health impacts arising from the increased accessibility of cannabis that legalized adult use will bring,” the department’s testimony read.
The department noted that while SB 375 would restrict recreational cannabis access to patrons ages 21 and over, the human brain continues to develop into a person’s mid-20s. Additionally, the department voiced concern over a potential increase in children becoming unintentionally exposed to cannabis.
In contrast, the Office of the Public Defender provided testimony arguing that regulating the cultivation and sale of cannabis would increase the state’s ability to protect youths from its effects.
“The legalization of cannabis and manufactured cannabis products will not create or normalize the commercial marijuana market,” the testimony read. “Nor will legalization drive consumer demand. The marijuana market already exists. This market, however, remains underground, and those involved in it largely (remain) unaccountable.”
The office noted Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data reporting a decrease in marijuana use by young people between 2013 and 2019 — concurrent with several states legalizing recreational use — as well as a 2019 study finding that legalizing recreational cannabis may decrease cannabis use by minors.
“To be clear, the OPD does not support this bill out of the belief that marijuana is harmless,” the office’s testimony continued. “In fact, it is precisely because cannabis is not altogether harmless that reform advocates opine that it should be legalized and regulated accordingly — with restrictions on who can purchase and consume it, when and where they can do so, and at what age.”
A separate bill to legalize recreational cannabis, Senate Bill 669, passed the Senate Judiciary Committee with amendments last week, although it has since been re-referred to the committee.
SB 375 now moves on to both the Senate Judiciary Committee and Committee on Ways and Means before it can return to the legislative floor.
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Jackson Healy, reporter, can be reached at 808-245-0427 or jhealy@thegardenisland.com.
