Hawaii: Two Senate Committees Approve Bill to Legalize Medical Cannabis Dispensaries
Two
different Senate committees in Hawaii approved House Bill 321 this week, a proposal to legalize the distribution of medical cannabis through state-licensed dispensaries. The proposal has already been approved by the state’s House, as well as the Senate Public Safety Committee.
On Wednesday, Hawaii’s Senate Ways and Means Committee voted 8 to 2 to approve House Bill 321. The same day, it was passed with a 3 to 1 vote in the Senate Committee on Judiciary and Labor. The proposal will now be up for a full Senate vote, where its passage will send it back to the House for concurrence.
House Bill 321 would establish a system of medical cannabis production centers and dispensaries, with the measure mandating that each county have at least one operating dispensary, with a minimum of 21 throughout the state.
The measure would mark the first time the distribution of medical cannabis has been legal in Hawaii, despite lawmakers legalizing the medicine in 2000.
– TheJointBlog
Rixer
Hopefully, mm patients from out of state will be able to purchase from their dispensaries.
Mary Whispering Wind
The voter did not legalize marijuana in Hawai’i in 2000, it was a legislative action. The first legislature in the nation to pass medical marijuana laws, however it did NOT “legalize” medical marijuana, it still remains a Schedule 1 narcotic in Hawai’i, with NO medical value. The law allows patients an “affirmative defense” if they are caught with less than the amount they are restricted to. The 2015 Dispensary bills still do not address this conflict. Don’t Compromise – LEGALIZE!