FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tuesday, March 5, 2024
HONOLULU, HI — On Tuesday, the Hawai’i State Senate passed SB 3335, SD2, a bill that would legalize and regulate cannabis for adults 21 and older, with a focus on public safety. The bill now moves to the Hawai’i House of Representatives for consideration. A summary of the bill can be found here.
Before reaching the Senate floor, SB 3335 was approved by four committees. Amendments were approved during the committee process, including to add non-discrimination provisions that would prevent children from being taken away based on cannabis, prevent parole/probation revocation, and prevent state benefits and entitlements from being denied; and to provide for expungement and resentencing.
The amendments approved by the committees addressed some of the Hawaiʻi Alliance for Cannabis Reform’s concerns. However, changes are still needed to ensure the bill is rooted in equity and justice instead of an overly punitive approach that excessively ramps up law enforcement. HACR’s concerns and requested amendments for SB 3335 are available here.
While there are still issues in the bill that HACR would like to see addressed, the Senate approval of this legislation is significant progress that would prevent life-ruining impacts. Additionally, legalizing cannabis is a policy change that is supported by a sizeable majority of Hawai’i adults. A recent Hawai’i Perspectives poll found that 58% of Hawai’i residents are in favor of “legalizing marijuana to allow possession, manufacture, and sale of marijuana by and to adults, under state licensing, regulation, and taxation.”
“Although this is an imperfect bill that still contains far too many elements of criminalization, it’s welcome news to have a viable adult-use legalization bill that can be improved upon when it reaches the House. Drug Policy Forum of Hawaii and other members of the Hawaii Alliance for Cannabis Reform are hopeful that our proposed amendments will be considered by the House Judiciary and Hawaiian Affairs Committee. It will also be important for reform advocates to engage skeptical members of the House, including many freshman lawmakers, who have placed far too much currency in the monotonous, less than fact-based rhetoric from the criminal legal lobby.”
–Nikos Leverenz, of the Drug Policy Forum of Hawai’i and the Hawai’i Health and Harm Reduction Center
“Hawai’i is behind the times on cannabis policy reform, but 2024 could be the year that finally changes. Right now, Hawai’i lawmakers have the opportunity to not only pass legalization and regulation, but also to work to improve the bill to ensure it is rooted in justice and equity, not an excessively punitive approach. Cannabis legalization is an essential criminal justice reform, and Hawai’i lawmakers should treat it as such by focusing far more on education, reinvesting in communities, reparative justice, and building an equitable and inclusive industry.”
–Karen O’Keefe, director of state policies for the Marijuana Policy Project
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The Hawaiʻi Alliance for Cannabis Reform is a coalition of citizens, organizations, and community leaders working to end marijuana prohibition in Hawai’i and replace it with a system in which marijuana is not only regulated and taxed similarly to alcohol but also provides retroactive relief for those harmed by its prohibition. Current coalition members include the Marijuana Policy Project, ACLU of Hawai’i, Drug Policy Forum of Hawai’i, Council for Native Hawaiian Advancement, Last Prisoner Project, Hawai’i Appleseed Budget & Policy Center, Doctors for Drug Policy Reform, Hawai’i Innocence Project, Sustainable Chamber of Commerce, and Cannabis Education Hawai’i