STAND. COM. REP. NO. 916

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2019

RE: H.B. No. 673

H.D. 2

Honorable Scott K. Saiki

Speaker, House of Representatives

Thirtieth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2019

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Finance, to which was referred H.B. No. 673, H.D. 2, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO MEDICAL CANNABIS,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to amend the State's medical cannabis and dispensary laws to:

(1) Provide a process for the voluntary or involuntary sale or transfer of an individual dispensary license;

(2) Allow physician assistants to provide written certification for medical cannabis use for qualifying patients;

(3) Allow licensed dispensaries to have up to two additional manufacturing or processing facilities separate from their production facilities;

(4) Allow retail dispensaries to operate on state and federal holidays;

(5) Require all dispensary and related facilities to conform with all county zoning and building code requirements;

(6) Require dispensary licensees to use their computer tracking system to collect data relating to transportation of medical cannabis and manufactured cannabis products among production centers, retail dispensing locations, and manufacturing or processing facilities;

(7) Allow a licensed dispensary to purchase and transport medical cannabis or manufactured cannabis products from another licensed dispensary, with Department approval, in the event of a crop failure, subject to documentation requirements; and

(8) Allow licensed retail dispensaries to sell edible cannabis and cannabidiol products, subject to production and labeling requirements.

Kine Bottles LLC, The Drug Policy Forum of Hawai‘i, LGBT Caucus of the Democratic Party of Hawaii, We Are One, Inc., Community Alliance on Prisons, and a few concerned individuals supported this measure. The Department of Transportation, Office of the Prosecuting Attorney of the County of Hawai‘i, Hawai‘i Police Department, and a concerned individual opposed this measure. The Department of the Attorney General, Department of Public Safety, Department of Health, Hawai‘i Educational Association for Licensed Therapeutic Healthcare, and Akamai Cannabis Clinic offered comments on this measure.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Finance that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 673, H.D. 2, and recommends that it pass Third Reading.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Finance,

____________________________

SYLVIA LUKE, Chair