Hawaii Moves Forward with Legal Cannabis Bill

[dropcap class=”kp-dropcap”]T[/dropcap]he tourists, honeymooners and locals of Hawaii have an abundance of natural beauties to indulge in on the islands. Cannabis consumption may soon join their to-do lists of activities, thanks to the initiative of  Sen. J. Kalani English. The Maui senator recently introduced Senate Bill 686, which lays out the path towards recreational cannabis. The bill’s amendments were recently approved unanimously in a 5-0 vote by the Senate Judiciary committee.

The committee made state history to be the first in Hawaii to pass a bill for legalization of recreational cannabis with organizations such as the American Civil Liberties Union of Hawaii and the Drug Policy Forum of Hawaii (DPFH)  standing behind the measure. Although some members of the DPFH expressed hope for past cannabis convictions to be expunged from criminal records, as of now there is no official word on whether the bill addresses the issue.

The Drug Policy Forum’s executive director shared it was a, “historic development to move Hawaii away from criminalizing to taxing-and-regulating adult-use cannabis [that] should not be underestimated.”

Similar to existing recreational laws in states like California and Colorado, the measure would legalize cannabis for  adults 21 years and older. Both cannabis and products derived from the plant would only be sold by facilities licensed by the government. The state’s Department of Health, which already supervises the medical cannabis system, would regulate retail sales in the wake of full legalization.

The law would require, “licensing to operate marijuana establishments. Subjects marijuana establishments to excise taxes and income taxes,” the Hawaii government website states.

After passing the vote, the bill’s next stop will be the Senate’s money committee. If the lawmakers of Hawaii do take all the necessary steps for establishing legal cannabis consumption, the islands would see recreational cannabis as early as February 2020.