HB 2600 and SB 3335 are comprehensive cannabis legalization bills, which the Hawai’i Attorney General’s office drafted. While there are some positive features, including the inclusion of home cultivation and a social equity program, we have serious concerns about several aspects of the bills. They are overly focused on ramping up law enforcement and re-criminalizing innocuous conduct. We recommend significantly revising the bills to focus far more on education, reinvesting in communities, reparative justice, and building an equitable and inclusive industry. Here is a summary of key provisions of HB 2600/SB 3335:

Personal Possession and Cultivation

• Beginning January 1, 2026, the bill would allow adults 21 and older to:
  • possess up to one ounce of cannabis and five grams of concentrates.
  • cultivate up to six plants and to store up to 10 ounces of cannabis at home.
• Personal cultivation:
• • may only occur in a secured place, not easily accessible to those under 21.
  • cannot be visible to the public without the use of technology.
  • is only allowed at one’s private residence, which does not include federal public housing, shelters, on-campus housing, and commercial housing.
  • regardless of the number of adults living in a residence, the total limit per residence is 10 plants and two pounds of harvested cannabis.

New Penalties and Limitations

• Creates an unscientific DUI law. Criminalizes adults for 5 nanograms per milliliter of THC in their system, an amount that can remain long after impairment wears off.
• Imposes up to 30 days in jail for anyone who possesses a cannabis package that has ever been opened, loose cannabis, or any pipe in the passenger area of a vehicle.
• Prohibits consuming cannabis in any public place or a vehicle.
• Cannabis must be stored in a “sealed child-resistant and resealable packaging with original labels and not easily accessible” to anyone under 21.
• Penalties are only removed for those in “strict compliance” with the law. A minor violation, such as cannabis plants being visible to neighbors, could result in jail time.
• Appears to re-criminalize possession of up to three grams of cannabis for those under 21, and to send those between the ages of 18-20 to probation and defer prosecution. Upon completion, the minor can petition for expungement.
• Does not require anyone who controls property to allow cannabis consumption, display, processing, or distribution.
• However, landlords cannot prevent the possession or non-inhaled use of cannabis unless an exception applies, such as if the tenant is a roomer, the residence is transitional housing, or federal law requires otherwise.

Non-Discrimination

• Professional and occupational licensees may not be subject to discipline by state or county boards for providing services to state-legal cannabis businesses.
• Provides, “The use of adult-use cannabis alone shall not disqualify a person from any needed medical procedure or treatment, including organ and tissue transplants, unless in the judgment of the health care provider the use of cannabis increases the risk for a bad outcome from the procedure or treatment.”
• Fails to include non-discrimination protections for consumers related to child custody, state benefits, occupational licensing, and parole/probation revocation.
• Weakens the existing law providing the medical use of cannabis doesn’t disqualify a patient from an organ transplant or other needed medical care.

Adult-Use Cannabis Market Regulations

• Establishes the Hawaii Cannabis Authority, governed by the Cannabis Control Board, to regulate adult-use cannabis businesses.
• The five-member appointed board will be part-time and unpaid.
• The board will appoint an executive director, who must have experience in cannabis regulation or public health administration.
• Staff will include the following full-time positions: an executive secretary, a chief financial officer, general counsel, and chiefs of technology, compliance, equity, public health, and environment.

Cannabis Business Licensing

• Provides for licensing of cannabis cultivators, processors, medical dispensaries, retail (adult-use) dispensaries, craft dispensaries, and independent laboratories.
• The board may adopt rules for permits for special events, social consumption, and trucking permits.
• A person may only have an interest in nine total licenses, and three in a license class.
• Cultivation facilities cannot exceed 2,000 square feet indoors and 5,000 outdoors.
• The board will set application and licensing fees, which may vary based on business volume.

Expungement

• Does not include expungement. Requires a report on the advisability of expunging or sealing low-level offenses “without causing undue burden” by early 2027.

Additional Law Enforcement

• Creates a new cannabis enforcement unit, with 17 new law enforcement positions.
• Creates eight positions in a drug nuisance abatement unit in the AG’s office.

Taxation and Revenue Allocation

• Imposes a 10% retail tax on cannabis, in addition to regular state GET taxes (4%).
• Allocates 35% to regulation, 25% to a social equity fund, 15% to public health and education, 10% to a public safety special fund, 7.5% to a new cannabis law enforcement special fund, and 7.5% to a cannabis nuisance abatement fund.
• It is unclear if medical cannabis from a dual-licensed store is tax-exempt.
• Also makes several initial allocations.

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