Aloha Registered Patients and Caregivers

[Obie]

This message is to inform you of upcoming changes to Hawaii’s medical cannabis laws relating to caregivers and the personal cultivation of cannabis for medical use. If you or your caregiver cultivate cannabis, or plan to cultivate cannabis, there are two significant changes that will be implemented at the end of the year that may impact you. After December 31, 2024:

1. Caregivers will no longer be authorized to grow cannabis for a patient; and
   
   
2. A location or grow site can only be used by up to five (5) patients to cultivate cannabis.
   

This change will happen pursuant to section 329-130, Hawaii Revised Statutes (HRS), Authorized Sources of Medical Cannabis. This past legislative session, the Office of Medical Cannabis Control and Regulation (OMCCR) submitted House Bill 2443 (HB 2443), which would have indefinitely extended the authorization for a caregiver to grow cannabis for their patient. Unfortunately, HB 2443 did not pass and the OMCCR is now required to implement section 329-130, HRS, as it is currently written.   


The legislature is really looking out for us !

[Punatang]

3. We are officially changing the name to cantabis.

[randomq]

Get your elderly, disabled, in-chronic-pain butts out there and grow your own weed. Or visit one of our convenient dispensaries where the right people profit!

[kalakoa]

People who want legalization can simply move to one of the states which offers this.

[terracore]

It was essentially legalized in the 2018 farm bill. You can order edibles online that ship to all 50 states, a lot of them will even ship free samples if you pay $5 for shipping. You can probably buy it locally as well.

If edibles aren't your thing, you can buy "hemp derived" smoke at the head shops.

But you might want to hurry, the farm bill expires this year and they might close a lot of these loopholes when they renew it.

[MyManao]

People who want legalization can simply move to one of the states which offers this.

Or work to change the laws that say it isn't.

Methinks the moving argument is a nonstarter.. especially the "can simply" part. But hey.. I'm only one old man with a little ol' point of view.. which can't imagine how much hassle moving would be. That's a big moat man.. a long swim..

[kalakoa]

Or work to change the laws that say it isn't.

Hawaii's lack of referendum process will make that very challenging. Case in point: this year's legalization bills "got further" than in previous years, only to be killed by the Legislature (yet again) in a procedural gambit. It's hard to know "the will of the people" when they're not invited to vote on the issue.

[MyManao]

Hawaii's lack of referendum process will make that very challenging..

Actually, I think it's the citizens of Hawaii who traditionally don't engage in the referendum process that is afforded them that's the real hurdle in terms of citizen's engagement in the creation of our laws. 

And while I will give you that the state legislature is scared shitless of its electorate, and as such we do not have a state wide Referendum process, we do have a county Initiative process which pretty much adds up to the same thing, but at the county level. Though to be sure, if enough people want a specific change they do have vehicles to bring them about, but we don't take advantage of them.

For those that don't understand the process, CB published an article.. Use The County Initiative Process To Create Change In Hawaii.. that goes a long way towards explaining it.. at..

https://www.civilbeat.org/2021/03/use-th...in-hawaii/

[kalakoa]

we do have a county Initiative process

Only on paper. County residents voted to decriminalize marijuana. County counsel ignored the results of the referendum on the grounds that "State and/or Federal law pre-empts".

[MyManao]

Only on paper...

I think it's hard to judge the process by the dysfunctional way in which it is employed hereabouts. I agree entirely that in that instance it failed us, but vaguely remember there was a lope hole as big as to accommodate an 18 wheeler.. but yeah, that one got a lot of pushback and crumbled under its weight.

I still feel it's a poorly used process which lacks the public's awareness of, and interest in, using it as a vehicle to address common concerns. And just think, if it was employed as it is elsewhere voting would be a whole lot more fun.  And, probably, as an extension more people would choose to get involved in the process. 

But hey, a barefoot and pregnant electorate is way more preferable than one that actually thinks and acts..