Drugs

...The Senate says 'yes' to marijuana and 'no' to anti-GMO protesters....

...legislative priorities are out-of-touch with reality....

...provide a total of eight dispensary licenses statewide, three in Honolulu, two on Maui County and Hawaii Island, and one on Kauai. Each dispensary licensee would have the option to open up to two retail locations.... 

Perhaps the largest expenses these operators are forbidden from deducting under § 280E are the excise taxes and license fees they pay to the state....

...HB321, SD2 proposes a 15% gross proceeds tax and a 10% special sales tax on so-called 'medical' marijuana sold in Hawaii....

Kauai is the only county in Hawaii that has taken a stand against this onrush of legislation....

Today is 2nd Decking, which means that all bills must be in their FINAL FORM so that the chamber they are in can vote on them....

Below are bills that were heard between Friday, March 20, 2015 and Thursday, March 26, 2015....

A report on the top state issues of 2015....

...they focused on promoting individual choice and personal responsibility, inciting fear of big government, threatening economic insecurity, and accusing public health scientists of manipulating data....

...A newly hired legal clerk at the Hawaii County Prosecutor's Office in Hilo can start working without the mandatory urine test, a federal judge ruled Friday....

...scheduled for hearings this week....

... Medical Marijuana; Dispensaries and Production Centers; Appropriation ($) ....

...House bills will now move through Senate committees and Senate bills will move through House committees....

...testimony of marijuana supporters argue that the bills being considered should decriminalize marijuana for BOTH adults and minors....

Mahalo for taking the time to engage your public officials....

...The question now is not whether the dispensary bills will pass, but more what these bills will look like....

Marijuana advocates are hard at work trying to game the system....

...bills that might have negative impacts on families or communities....

TUESDAY FEBRUARY 24, 2015 at the Kamiano Center on Fort Street Mall, at 6:30 P.M....

House Health and Judiciary Committee chairs are looking to move marijuana legislation swiftly through committees....

...“possession, growing, processing, or transporting of not more than six marijuana plants...."

...liberal Democrats have taken a page from big tobacco companies.  But will they pay a multi-billion dollar settlement for the social ills created by their deception?....

As marijuana legalization took hold in Colorado, the estimated percentage of regular cannabis users in the state jumped to the second-highest level in the country....

...“I think for us to that that [legalize recreational use] without having all the data, there is not enough data, and to a certain extent you could say it was reckless.”....

A major new review in the scientific journal Addiction sets out the latest information on the effects of cannabis use on mental and physical health....

...marijuana legalization will usher in America’s new version of “Big Tobacco” ....

In its smoked form, marijuana potency and dosage cannot be controlled....

...use your EBT card at marijuana dispensaries in states such as Colorado that have legalized pot....

...The Dispensary System Task Force will submit a report of its findings and recommendations, including proposed legislation to the 2015 Legislature....

...For all OPR combined, the prescribing rate in Alabama was 2.7 times the rate in Hawaii....

...In the June 6 filing, Egan alleges that in the 1990s he was employed by the now-defunct Internet startup Digital Entertainment Network and coerced into attending sex and drug parties....

The investigation showed Aduja’s campaign issued $30,000 worth of checks to her former husband, Lee Williams.... Williams subsequently was arrested during a Chinatown drug bust....

Two messages from the Medical Cannabis Coalition of Hawai‘i indicate that its going to be a lot harder to get medicated courtesy of just any old doctor....

Topping off the irony, Rep Rhoads also introduced HB2577  which would ban indoor tobacco smoking in public housing....

Today the United States Senate approved the Agriculture Act of 2014, also known as the “Farm Bill,” which includes legalization of industrial hemp for research purposes....

The new poll, commissioned by Hawaii’s Drug Policy Action Group showed voter support for reform of Hawaii’s policies on marijuana trending upward....

Mr. Damas was arrested at the Halawa Correctional Facility where he was employed as an adult corrections officer....

“This state would turn into a manufacturing state." -- Rep Rida Cabanilla

...a lawless, violent, drug-addled, and adrenaline-soaked mecca....

In addition to repairing the cables, “no copper” and “fiber-optic cable” signs are being put in place to make it as clear as possible to potential thieves that there is nothing of value for them to steal....

... between $400,000 and $1,000,000 in fines for a single mature 40-day old plant ....

“The extensive report summarizes rates of treatment services in Hawaii and reflects substance abuse trends and areas of concern"

Surfing the Nations is counteracting the widespread perception that surfing is only about individual fulfillment....

Both the House and Senate will present a CD1 draft of SB 642 and HB 668 that would amend the bills....