Hawaii lawmakers move to decriminalize pot possession

The Legislature is not ready to legalize recreational pakalolo this year, but is moving forward with decriminalizing adult use of the federally illegal drug.

The state House of Representatives on Thursday passed legislation that would assess a $200 fine for adults without medical cannabis cards who are caught with up to three grams of pot but dismisses any criminal charges. The bill (House Bill 1383) was moved to the state Senate for consideration.

“This law keeps drug dealers behind bars where they belong, but also keeps regular people who just had a joint out of jail to avoid creating more hardened criminals which makes crime worse,” said state Rep. Chris Lee, chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, in a news release. “It removes the unnecessary permanent mark from their record so they can go back to school, get a better job, and take care of their family. If we want to actually reduce crime and reduce substance abuse, then our taxpayer dollars are more effectively spent on treatment rather than jailing people at a cost of $146 per person per day.”

Under state law the possession of pot is considered “promoting a detrimental drug in the third degree,” a petty misdemeanor punishable by up to 30 days in prison as well as a possible fine of $1,000.

If the bill is approved, Hawaii would become the 24th state to either decriminalize or legalize pot.

Meanwhile the state Department of Health on Thursday approved the opening of Hawaii island’s second medical marijuana dispensary. Lau Ola LLC, doing business as Big Island Grown Dispensaries, got the green light to begin sales at a second retail location at 64-1040 Mamalahoa Highway in Kamuela. Big Island Grown Dispensaries opened its first dispensary in Hilo in January.

Hawaii now has nine pot dispensaries on Oahu, Kauai, Maui and the Big Island for nearly 25,000 patients — 30 percent of them on Hawaii island.

“We appreciate the ongoing efforts of licensees to meet Hawaii’s rigorous standards while continuing to expand their operations to provide for the needs of registered patients,” said Michele Nakata, supervisor of DOH’s Medical Cannabis Dispensary Licensing Program, in a news release.

Hawaii dispensaries sold 1,569 pounds of medical cannabis totaling $12.6 million in 2018, and Tuesday opened online registration for the first time to both residents and patients of other states who are visiting the islands.

The state legalized medical cannabis in 2000, but patients had no legal way to obtain the drug until the dispensaries opened starting in August 2017. Lawmakers recently killed a bill that would have legalized recreational pot.