Lawmakers will not be legalizing marijuana this legislative session. The measure failed to get a key hearing in the House Finance Committee and has been stalled.
The committee’s chair, Rep. Kyle Yamashita decided on Tuesday that he would not allow the bill to be heard in his committee by Friday’s key legislative deadline.
In a written statement, Yamashita explained that a majority of Finance Committee members voted no during a full chamber vote, saying that energy and resources need to be focused instead on Maui fire recovery.
“Ensuring the recovery of our communities continues to come at an extraordinary cost to the state budget, and the full cost of implementing the legalization of adult-use cannabis is unknown,” he stated.
“As lawmakers, it would be remiss of us not to allocate funding to safeguard critical government services, including education, infrastructure, roads, and other essential services for Hawaiʻi's residents and kūpuna, especially during a period of fiscal uncertainty.”
This was the furthest a recreational marijuana measure has advanced in the state Legislature as it was largely based on a report from the state Attorney General’s office, issued earlier this year. It received strong approval in the Senate and narrowly passed its second reading in the House.
Gov. Josh Green has also said in the past that he supports marijuana legalization.
Rep. David Tarnas, one of the key drivers of the measure, said he supports Yamashita’s decision and will continue working on the issue.
“We need to make sure we protect public health and public safety so I will work to make sure that we come up with an even better bill,” Tarnas said.
“I'll pay particular attention to how other states manage the fiscal aspects of the adult use cannabis programs so that I can be able to provide that information to the finance committee so that when we are considering this next session that we would have more information available,” he continued.
Sen. Jarrett Keohokalole, who introduced the measure in the Senate, said he was not surprised at Yamashita’s decision.
“We'll have to take a look and take a step back after the session and see what more could be done,” Keohokalole said.
“I do think that given how many states have legalized across the country this issue is inevitable. And so what we tried to do in the Senate this year was put together comprehensive legislation that would allow us to implement a program effectively, in the best way possible,” he said.
Ty Cheng, chair of the Hawaiʻi Cannabis Industry Association, was disappointed that the House didn’t give the measure its last committee hearing.
He said the funds from legal marijuana sales could have been used to better the state’s finances.
“We felt that cannabis legalization could shore up anywhere between $36 million to $81 million in the first couple of years of legalization,” he said.
“Those funds would go a long way, filling the pukas in the budget.”
The bill would have used the money to fund enforcement and other social services like youth and drug treatment programs.
Opponents of legalization were concerned about public safety, particularly regarding children.
“Across the nation, drug commercialization has been a net negative, universally harming public health, increasing youth use, spurring more drugged driving fatalities, and harming minority communities,” said Kevin Sabet, the president of Smart Approaches to Marijuana Action, in a statement.
“Hawaiʻi's House members wisely chose the side of science and medical data, and made it clear they aren’t fooled by an industry that puts profits over people.”
However, Drug Policy Forum of Hawaiʻi President Nikos Leverenz said that the criminalization of marijuana has historically hurt minority communities.
“Criminalization does not further the health, safety and welfare of children,” he said.
“I think we need to have a regulated adult use system where products are taxed, where products are adequately labeled and accurately labeled, and products which restrict access to those over the age of 21. Right now, we have a market that is unregulated, untaxed.”
Leverenz also urged the state’s congressional delegation to do more advocacy for marijuana legalization on a federal level.
“That includes taking cannabis out of the Controlled Substances Act,” he said. “It also includes ensuring that cannabis-related businesses have access to banking and other financial services.”
Cheng said that marijuana legalization should be something voters consider in this year’s election.
“This was the first time that House members had to get on record on cannabis prohibition,” he said. “I think the covers have been pulled and now we know where our lawmakers stand.”
Another measure that would decriminalize higher amounts of marijuana possession is awaiting a third reading in the House.
How did we get here? Read past coverage from HPR's Ashley Mizuo on marijuana legalization this legislative session:
