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Drug Policy Watch · State Brief 2026

Hawaii

Snapshot (structured)

Adult-use cannabis
Not legal. Broad legalization blocked in the House again in 2026; a "low-dose" personal-use bill died at crossover.
Medical cannabis
Legal since 2000; medical-only retail market.
Home grow
Allowed for registered patients only (up to 10 plants, indoor and not visible from outside). No general adult home grow.
Intoxicating hemp / hemp THC
Banned. Synthetic and intoxicating hemp cannabinoids prohibited; new registration and enforcement regime began Jan 1, 2026.
Psychedelics
Illegal (Schedule I). 2026 bill (SB 3199) created a study task force; no decriminalization or therapeutic access.
Broad decriminalization
Very narrow. Possession of 3 grams or less is a civil violation; everything above remains criminal.
Harm reduction
Strong. Oldest state-funded syringe program in the US (1990); naloxone access; fentanyl test strips legal since 2023.
Governor (party)
Josh Green (Democrat).
Legislature control
Democratic supermajority in both chambers (Senate roughly 22-3, House roughly 42-9).
Citizen ballot initiatives allowed
No statewide citizen initiative; counties have local initiative.
Enclosure pressure score
4/5

Cannabis

Hawaii has no adult-use (recreational) cannabis law. It legalized medical cannabis in 2000 and added a regulated dispensary system in 2015, with dispensary sales beginning in 2017. The market is medical-only.

In the 2026 regular session the familiar pattern repeated: the Senate moved cannabis reform while the House blocked it. House Speaker Nadine Nakamura (D) and Rep. David Tarnas (D) signaled early that broad legalization lacked the votes in the House for 2026, and the two House legalization vehicles were declared effectively dead (Marijuana Moment; Hawaii Tribune-Herald). https://www.marijuanamoment.net/hawaii-marijuana-legalization-bills-are-likely-dead-for-2026-session-key-lawmakers-say https://www.hawaiitribune-herald.com/2026/02/09/hawaii-news/bills-aimed-at-legalizing-recreational-marijuana-lack-support/

The Senate's fallback was an incremental "low-dose, low-potency" bill, SB 3275, from Sen. Joy San Buenaventura (D). It would have allowed adults 21 and older to use low-dose cannabis (no more than 5 mg THC per serving) beginning January 1, 2027, with limited home cultivation, but would not have created a licensed commercial adult-use market. Two Senate committees (Health and Human Services, and Commerce and Consumer Protection) advanced it on February 18, 2026, but it stalled and did not survive the session's deadlines (Cannabis Business Times; MPP; LegiScan). https://www.cannabisbusinesstimes.com/us-states/hawaii/news/15817656/hawaii-senate-advances-lowdose-adultuse-cannabis-legalization-bill https://legiscan.com/HI/bill/SB3275/2026

Market structure: Each dispensary licensee may operate up to two retail locations and up to two production centers. There are eight licensed dispensaries statewide, two in each of the four counties (Honolulu, Maui, Hawaii, Kauai), held by a small number of vertically integrated licensees. Applications have been closed since the original 2016 licensing round, so the licensee pool is effectively fixed (Hawaii DOH OMCCR 2025 Annual Report; HawaiiStateCannabis.org). https://health.hawaii.gov/opppd/files/2025/09/MCDLP-Annual-Report-Jan-2025.pdf https://hawaiistatecannabis.org/licensing

Taxes: There is no separate cannabis excise tax. Medical cannabis is subject to Hawaii's General Excise Tax (4 percent statewide, 4.5 percent on Oahu with the county surcharge) (cannabiscpa.tax 2025 guide; HawaiiStateCannabis.org). https://cannabiscpa.tax/hawaii-cannabis-tax-guide-2025-edition/

Key 2026 actions: broad legalization blocked again in the House; SB 3275 low-dose bill died at crossover. A Senate-passed bill to let seriously ill patients use medical cannabis in healthcare facilities advanced during the session (Marijuana Moment). https://www.marijuanamoment.net/hawaii-senate-passes-bill-to-allow-medical-marijuana-use-by-seriously-ill-patients-in-health-facilities/

Hemp

Hawaii bans intoxicating hemp. State law does not permit hemp-derived products that are intoxicating, and it prohibits synthetic or artificially derived cannabinoids such as delta-8 THC, delta-10, THC-O, THC-P, and HHC. CBD products that are non-intoxicating are allowed (The Marijuana Herald 50-state survey; Burning Daily). https://themarijuanaherald.com/2025/11/legal-status-of-hemp-derived-thc-products-in-all-50-states-november-2025/

Governor Josh Green signed HB 1482 into law on July 2, 2025, establishing a registration system for manufactured hemp product distributors and retailers. Beginning January 1, 2026, the Department of Health gained expanded enforcement powers to register sellers, fine non-compliant businesses, and seize illegal or unregistered intoxicating THC products (KHON2; cannabisregulations.ai; Hawaii DOH Hemp Program). https://www.khon2.com/local-news/hawaii-doh-could-seize-unregulated-thc-products-in-2026/ https://health.hawaii.gov/hempprogram/retailer-distributor-registry-faq/

Federal exposure: On November 12, 2026, Section 781 of the federal Continuing Appropriations Act, 2026 (signed November 2025) takes effect, shifting the federal hemp definition to a total-THC standard and capping finished consumable hemp products at very low total THC (reported at roughly 0.4 mg per container). Because Hawaii already bans intoxicating hemp, the federal change largely aligns with and reinforces existing state policy rather than upending it. As of mid-2026 no federal delay legislation had cleared Congress, so the November 12 date remained the planning baseline (Vicente LLP; Arnold & Porter; The Haze Connect). https://vicentellp.com/insights/2026-federal-hemp-ban-what-it-means-for-the-future-of-consumable-hemp-products/ https://www.arnoldporter.com/en/perspectives/advisories/2025/12/major-changes-to-federal-regulation-of-hemp-derived-products https://thehazeconnect.com/blogs/learn/november-12-2026-federal-hemp-deadline-every-state

Psychedelics

Psilocybin and other psychedelics remain Schedule I controlled substances in Hawaii; possession is a felony and there is no therapeutic access program. In the 2026 session, SB 3199 (sponsored by Sen. Chris Lee, D) advanced to create a Mental Health Emerging Therapies Task Force charged with spending two years reviewing scientific literature, supporting clinical research, and developing policy recommendations for a possible psychedelics therapy program. The bill passed the Senate (reported 24-0) and cleared House Health and House Finance committees; the task force would sunset June 30, 2028 (Marijuana Moment; LegiScan; BillTrack50). https://www.marijuanamoment.net/hawaii-lawmakers-approve-bill-to-create-psychedelics-task-force-charged-with-studying-psilocybin-and-mdma/ https://legiscan.com/HI/text/SB3199/2026

Whether Governor Green signed SB 3199 into final law is unconfirmed in available sources as of June 2026; treat the task force as approved by the legislature pending confirmation of enactment (link above). A separate, broader 2026 bill to create a limited therapeutic psilocybin program for certain mental-health conditions was introduced and advanced through some House committees but is not confirmed as enacted (Marijuana Moment). https://www.marijuanamoment.net/new-hawaii-bill-would-create-a-limited-therapeutic-psilocybin-program-to-treat-certain-mental-health-conditions/

Broader drug policy

Decriminalization: Hawaii decriminalized possession of 3 grams or less of cannabis in 2019 (effective 2020), making it a civil violation with a $130 fine and no jail. This is among the most restrictive decriminalization thresholds in the country; possession above 3 grams remains criminal. A 2026 effort to raise the civil-violation threshold to 15 grams (SB 319 and related vehicles) was rejected by the Senate (ACLU of Hawaii; Marijuana Moment; MPP). https://www.acluhi.org/news/hawaii-senate-rejects-expansion-marijuana-decriminalization-law-while-broader-legalization/ https://www.mpp.org/states/hawaii/

Harm reduction: Hawaii runs the oldest state-funded syringe services program in the US (established 1990) and supports needs-based distribution through the Hawaii Health and Harm Reduction Center. Naloxone is distributed widely, including planned vending machines. Fentanyl test strips were legalized when Governor Green signed SB 671 in 2023, exempting them from the drug-paraphernalia statute (Network for Public Health Law 50-state survey; HHHRC; Civil Beat). https://www.networkforphl.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/50-State-DCE-Fact-Sheet-2023-2.pdf https://www.hhhrc.org/post/fentanyl-test-strips-legalized https://www.civilbeat.org/2023/05/hawaii-is-set-to-decriminalize-fentanyl-test-strips-as-drug-overdoses-reach-record-highs/

Sentencing and expungement: HB 132, enacted in 2025, streamlined cannabis expungement by removing cannabis-specific carve-outs and increased the amount eligible for automatic expungement to 3 ounces, treating marijuana like other low-schedule substances. A 2024 pilot in Hawaii County provides state-initiated expungement of arrest records for minor (about 1 ounce) marijuana offenses (Collateral Consequences Resource Center; greenhealthdocs). https://ccresourcecenter.org/state-restoration-profiles/hawaii-restoration-of-rights-pardon-expungement-sealing/ https://greenhealthdocs.com/changes-to-hawaii-medical-marijuana-laws-in-2025

Overdose and treatment policy: Drug overdose deaths, including fentanyl-driven deaths, have risen in Hawaii, which has driven the harm-reduction expansions above. The state's Advisory Commission on Drug Abuse and Controlled Substances (HACDACS) advises on scheduling and policy (Hawaii DOH; Civil Beat). https://health.hawaii.gov/substance-abuse/files/2026/02/HACDACS-9_24_24-Approved-Minutes.pdf

Political landscape

Governor: Josh Green, M.D. (Democrat), who has signed harm-reduction and hemp-regulation bills but has not driven adult-use legalization. https://ballotpedia.org/Joshua_Green

Legislature: Democrats hold veto-proof supermajorities in both chambers (Senate roughly 22-3; House roughly 42-9), making Hawaii a Democratic trifecta with one of the largest supermajorities in the country (Ballotpedia 2026 session). https://ballotpedia.org/2026_Hawaii_legislative_session

Key committees for drug policy: Senate Health and Human Services and Senate Commerce and Consumer Protection (which heard the 2026 cannabis bills); House Judiciary and Hawaiian Affairs and House Health committees handle related measures.

Reform champions: Sen. Joy San Buenaventura (D), lead author of the low-dose cannabis and prior adult-use bills; Sen. Chris Lee (D), sponsor of the psychedelics task force bill. https://www.marijuanamoment.net/hawaii-senators-approve-bill-to-create-psychedelics-task-force-to-study-pathways-for-access-to-psilocybin-mdma-and-more

Opponents / blockers: House Speaker Nadine Nakamura (D) and Rep. David Tarnas (D) have repeatedly signaled that adult-use legalization lacks House support, which is the main reason Senate-passed cannabis bills die. Specific named opponents beyond House leadership posture are unconfirmed. https://www.hawaiitribune-herald.com/2026/02/09/hawaii-news/bills-aimed-at-legalizing-recreational-marijuana-lack-support/

Ballot initiatives

Hawaii does not allow statewide citizen-initiated ballot measures. There is no initiative or referendum power in the Hawaii Constitution; constitutional amendments and statutes can only reach the ballot through the legislature or a constitutional convention. All four counties have local initiative processes, but those cannot legalize a state-controlled substance. There are no pending citizen cannabis or psychedelic ballot measures, and none are possible under current law (Ballotpedia). https://ballotpedia.org/Laws_governing_ballot_measures_in_Hawaii https://ballotpedia.org/History_of_Initiative_&_Referendum_in_Hawaii

Equity and expungement

Hawaii's medical cannabis statute has no meaningful social-equity licensing program; the eight dispensary licenses were awarded in 2016 to applicants able to meet high capital requirements, and applications have been closed since, so there is no equity-priority pathway for new entrants. On record relief, the state has moved further: HB 132 (2025) created broader automatic expungement of cannabis records (up to 3 ounces) by removing cannabis-specific exceptions, and a 2024 Hawaii County pilot allows state-initiated expungement of minor marijuana arrest records. Beneficiaries are people with low-level cannabis records; excluded are people seeking to enter the closed, capital-intensive licensed market and those with possession amounts above the expungeable thresholds (Collateral Consequences Resource Center; greenhealthdocs). https://ccresourcecenter.org/state-restoration-profiles/hawaii-restoration-of-rights-pardon-expungement-sealing/ https://greenhealthdocs.com/changes-to-hawaii-medical-marijuana-laws-in-2025

Market and barriers

Cannabis tax: No dedicated excise tax; General Excise Tax of 4 percent (4.5 percent on Oahu). https://cannabiscpa.tax/hawaii-cannabis-tax-guide-2025-edition/ License fees: Reported initial dispensary license fee of $75,000 and annual renewal fee of $50,000 (HawaiiStateCannabis.org licensing; figures should be reconfirmed against current DOH rules). https://hawaiistatecannabis.org/licensing Capital and residency: The original 2016 licensing required applicants to show substantial capital (historically on the order of $1 million in available funds) and Hawaii residency, which sharply limited who could qualify; exact current thresholds are unconfirmed and applications remain closed. https://hawaiistatecannabis.org/licensing License caps: Effectively fixed at 8 dispensary licensees statewide (two per county), each allowed up to two retail and two production sites. https://health.hawaii.gov/opppd/files/2025/09/MCDLP-Annual-Report-Jan-2025.pdf Approximate number of licensees: 8 dispensary licensees operating roughly 8 to 16 retail locations across four counties. https://hawaiistatecannabis.org/laws

Enclosure read

Hawaii's cannabis market is heavily fenced. A closed pool of eight vertically integrated medical dispensary licensees, no new applications since 2016, high capital and residency barriers, and no social-equity pathway mean the licensed market is effectively a small oligopoly with no route in for small or legacy operators. Patients can home grow, but ordinary adults cannot, and the Senate's only viable 2026 reform (low-dose personal use, no commercial market) would not have opened licensing. On hemp, the state has moved to ban intoxicating products and concentrate legal sales into a registered, enforceable channel, squeezing out the gray-market hemp-THC sellers who had served as an informal substitute for legal adult-use cannabis. The main counterweights are strong harm-reduction infrastructure and expanding expungement, which reduce criminalization even as market access stays closed. Net read: who is fenced out is small growers, new entrants, and intoxicating-hemp retailers; who is consolidating is the incumbent medical licensees and the Department of Health as gatekeeper. Score 4/5 reflects a tightly consolidated, license-capped market with active enclosure of the hemp channel, held just short of 5 by robust harm reduction and patient home grow.

What to watch next

Regulators

Federal exposure (2026)

Hawaii's drug policy intersects with several 2026 federal moves, and on balance the federal posture reinforces the state's already enclosed market while threatening its strongest commons asset, harm reduction.

Cannabis rescheduling and 280E. By default cannabis remains Schedule I federally. The DOJ/DEA order signed April 22, 2026 and effective April 28, 2026 (91 FR 22714) moved only FDA-approved cannabis drugs and state-licensed medical cannabis to Schedule III; recreational cannabis stays Schedule I, and the broader DEA rescheduling hearing that opened June 29, 2026 may slip to 2027. The practical Hawaii effect: because Hawaii is a medical-only state, its eight dispensary licensees fall squarely inside the medical category that gains Schedule III treatment, which ends the Section 280E tax penalty (the federal rule that bars Schedule I and II sellers from deducting ordinary business expenses) for them. That 280E relief flows entirely to the existing incumbents, the same small set of vertically integrated licensees that already dominate the closed market. Schedule III does not legalize cannabis, does not authorize interstate commerce, and does not reach any state recreational business, so it changes nothing for would-be adult-use entrants or for the low-dose personal-use model the Senate floated. Net effect: federal rescheduling improves the margins of Hawaii's incumbent oligopoly without opening the market. https://www.marijuanamoment.net/dea-cannabis-rescheduling-schedule-iii

The November 12, 2026 hemp cliff. Section 781 of the FY2026 agriculture appropriations (sponsored by Rep. Andy Harris, R-MD) narrows the federal hemp definition to a total-THC standard (roughly 0.4 mg THC per container), recriminalizing an estimated 90 to 95 percent of intoxicating hemp products effective November 12, 2026. The delay bill H.R.7010 was not enacted, and the 2026 Farm Bill (H.R.7567) keeps the ban. Hawaii already bans intoxicating hemp and synthetic cannabinoids and rolled out new Department of Health registration and enforcement under HB 1482 beginning January 1, 2026, so the federal ban reinforces rather than disrupts state policy. The practical effect: the federal cliff removes the interstate supply channel and legal cover that gray-market delta-8 and similar sellers relied on, so any intoxicating-hemp product that survived state enforcement loses its federal footing too. For Hawaii consumers this closes the informal hemp-THC substitute for adult-use cannabis from both directions at once, leaving the medical dispensaries as the only legal intoxicant channel. https://vicentellp.com/insights/2026-federal-hemp-ban-what-it-means-for-the-future-of-consumable-hemp-products/

Banking. SAFER Banking has stalled in Congress, so state-legal cannabis businesses still face restricted access to banks, card networks, and ordinary lending. In Hawaii this compounds an already closed, capital-intensive dispensary market: high original capital thresholds and large license fees screen out small operators at entry, and the continued banking freeze keeps those incumbents cash-heavy and hard to scale or sell while still deterring any new capital that might pressure the eight-licensee structure. Banking reform would have been one of the few federal levers capable of loosening the market; its stall leaves the enclosure intact. https://www.marijuanamoment.net/?s=safer+banking

Psychedelics. Psilocybin, MDMA, and ibogaine all remain Schedule I federally. The April 18, 2026 executive order, Accelerating Medical Treatments for Serious Mental Illness [https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2026/04/accelerating-medical-treatments-for-serious-mental-illness/] plus FDA priority vouchers fast-track FDA review, but no psychedelic has been approved, and conditional rescheduling triggers only on FDA approval. Hawaii's own 2026 vehicle, SB 3199 (Sen. Chris Lee, D), only creates a study task force and provides no therapeutic access, so the state and federal tracks are aligned in caution: Hawaii is studying while Washington reviews, and neither has opened a legal access pathway. If FDA approval lands during the task force window, the federal rescheduling that follows would give Hawaii a ready-made medical framework to plug into, but until then access stays closed on both levels. https://www.marijuanamoment.net/hawaii-lawmakers-approve-bill-to-create-psychedelics-task-force-charged-with-studying-psilocybin-and-mdma/

Harm reduction (the sharpest exposure). SAMHSA guidance issued April 24, 2026 bars federal funds from being used for fentanyl test strips, clean syringes, and sterile water, updating a July 2025 directive under the administration's Ending Crime and Disorder executive order; naloxone remains federally supported. This is where Hawaii is most exposed, because the state runs the oldest state-funded syringe services program in the country (since 1990) and legalized fentanyl test strips in 2023, and in 2025 (Act 106) it removed the one-for-one syringe limit to allow needs-based distribution. The two harm-reduction supplies the state has built its program around, syringes and test strips, are precisely the categories SAMHSA now defunds; only naloxone is spared. The practical effect: any federal dollars flowing to the Hawaii Health and Harm Reduction Center or the DOH Harm Reduction Services Branch for syringes, sterile water, or test strips are now at risk, shifting the full cost of needs-based distribution onto state appropriations and private funding. Hawaii's strongest commons institution is the one most directly squeezed by the 2026 federal posture. https://www.naco.org/news/samhsa-implements-new-harm-reduction-restrictions-updated-guidance https://health.hawaii.gov/harmreduction/syringe-services-program/

Fentanyl scheduling. The HALT Fentanyl Act (signed July 17, 2025) permanently places fentanyl-related substances in Schedule I. This is consistent with Hawaii's own enforcement posture and does not change state law, but it reinforces a criminalization frame federally even as Hawaii leans on harm reduction; the tension is that the same overdose crisis driving Hawaii's syringe and test-strip expansions is being met federally with permanent scheduling plus defunded harm reduction.

Patient access and rights

This section covers what Hawaii law does and does not protect for a medical cannabis patient: use inside a hospital, and the broader rights that follow a patient into work, housing, parenting, an organ transplant list, and school. It is information, not legal advice, and it reflects the law as of July 2026. Each point links to the primary statute.

Hospital access (Ryan's Law): Hawaii has no hospital-access law. A Ryan's Law bill, Senate Bill 2408, moved through the 2026 session, passing the Senate 25 to 0, but it was deferred in the House Judiciary Committee on April 1, 2026 and did not become law. So no statute requires a Hawaii hospital, nursing home, or hospice to let a qualifying patient use medical cannabis on site; whether a facility allows it is left to that facility's own policy. Seven states have enacted a Ryan's Law protection (California in 2021, and Colorado, Delaware, Louisiana, Oregon, Virginia, and Washington in 2026), and Pennsylvania has a bill pending; Hawaii's 2026 attempt fell short. The absence is the finding: a Hawaii patient has no enforceable right to use their medicine in a hospital today.

Broader protections: away from the hospital, Hawaii is comparatively strong. A single statute, HRS Section 329-125.5, protects a qualifying patient in five of the six areas. It bars a landlord or a school from refusing a person solely for being a registered patient (subsection (a)), protects custody and visitation absent a showing of danger to the child (subsection (c)), and provides that for the purposes of medical care, including organ transplants, authorized use is treated as the equivalent of any other prescribed medication (subsection (b)). A Hawaii patient cannot be denied a transplant listing solely for lawful medical cannabis use. The one gap is employment: a review of Section 329-125.5 found no employment protection. That gap is the finding.

Out-of-state patients: Hawaii recognizes visiting patients through a paid temporary process; an out-of-state patient may obtain a 329 out-of-state registration to use the program while in Hawaii.

The federal picture: the April 2026 federal move of state-licensed medical cannabis to Schedule III did not change any of this. Schedule III does not make dispensary cannabis a lawful prescription medicine and does not create any hospital-use right; only state law can force hospital access, and Hawaii's 2026 bill did not pass. The broader protections above are a creature of Hawaii law, not federal law.

Sources: Hawaii patient protections, HRS Section 329-125.5; Ryan's Law bill, SB 2408 (2026).

Related reading from Drug Policy Watch: the Federal Drug Policy Brief, the Schedule III rescheduling explainer, and the 50-State Matrix.

Analysis: the enclosure read in depth

Who is fenced out, and who consolidates. In Hawaii the enclosure is unusually clean because the gates are stacked. At the state level the cannabis market is a fixed pool of eight vertically integrated medical licensees, two per county, with applications closed since 2016, high capital and residency barriers, and no social-equity pathway; ordinary adults cannot grow, only registered patients can, and the House has repeatedly blocked broad legalization, with leadership (Speaker Nadine Nakamura, D, and Rep. David Tarnas, D) signaling again in 2026 that the votes are not there. There is no statewide citizen initiative, so there is no ballot escape route around the legislature. That means the only people who can hold a legal stake in the intoxicant market are the existing licensees, and the only body that can change that is a House that does not want to. Fenced out: small and legacy growers, would-be new entrants, intoxicating-hemp retailers, and adult consumers who lack a patient card. Consolidating: the incumbent medical licensees and the Department of Health as gatekeeper across cannabis, hemp registration, and harm reduction.

The state-plus-federal interaction. The 2026 federal moves do not open any of these gates; they tighten most of them. Schedule III hands 280E relief to the eight incumbents, improving their economics without admitting anyone new. The November 12, 2026 hemp cliff removes the federal supply and legal cover for the gray-market hemp-THC channel that had been the informal substitute for legal adult-use, so the state ban and the federal ban close that door together, leaving the dispensaries as the sole legal intoxicant outlet. Stalled SAFER Banking keeps the market cash-bound and hard for outside capital to enter, locking in the incumbent structure. The one place federal action runs against the state's grain is harm reduction: the SAMHSA defunding cuts directly at Hawaii's strongest commons institution rather than its enclosed market. So the federal layer reinforces enclosure on the commercial side and attacks the commons on the public-health side, a doubly unfavorable interaction for small and informal actors and for the people the harm-reduction system serves.

Commons counter-moves. Two genuine counterweights are present. First, harm reduction: the oldest state-funded syringe program in the country, needs-based distribution since Act 106 (2025), legal fentanyl test strips, and broad naloxone access keep criminalization and overdose risk down even though market access stays closed; the open question is whether state funds backfill the SAMHSA cuts. Second, expungement: HB 132 (2025) broadened automatic cannabis record clearance to 3 ounces and a 2024 Hawaii County pilot provides state-initiated expungement of minor arrest records, which reduces the lasting penalty of prohibition for low-level offenders. These are real commons moves, but both operate on the criminalization and public-health margins, not on market access; neither creates a route into the licensed economy.

What to watch. Whether the 2027 session revives adult-use, low-dose, or decriminalization-expansion bills, and whether House leadership shifts; whether Governor Green signed SB 3199 and the task force forms; the DOH hemp enforcement ramp through and past November 12, 2026; FDA psychedelic approvals that could trigger federal rescheduling and give Hawaii's task force a framework to adopt; and, most urgently, whether the legislature appropriates state money to replace the SAMHSA-cut federal funding for syringes and test strips.

Why the score is 4/5. The state dynamics alone justify a high enclosure read: a tightly capped, closed, capital-intensive oligopoly, no equity pathway, no home grow for adults, a blocking House, and no ballot escape, plus active state enclosure of the hemp channel. The 2026 federal layer pushes the same direction, 280E relief to incumbents, a hemp cliff that finishes off the informal substitute, and stalled banking that locks in the structure, which on the market side argues toward 5. What holds the score at 4 rather than 5 is the genuine and unusually strong commons presence: the nation's oldest state-funded syringe program with needs-based distribution, legal test strips, broad naloxone, and expanding expungement, alongside patient home grow. Those commons moves are now under federal pressure from the SAMHSA cuts, so the 4 is increasingly contingent: if Hawaii does not backfill the defunded harm-reduction supplies, the last thing keeping it short of a maximal enclosure score weakens, and the read would move toward 5.

Active legislation (2026)

This list is not exhaustive. The 2026 regular session convened January 21 and adjourned sine die May 8, 2026, so most of these bills are now resolved (passed, dead, or carried over for 2027). For the full and current list, see the Hawaii State Legislature site (capitol.hawaii.gov) and LegiScan's Hawaii tracker.

Beyond the live tracker

These measures are not in the live bill list below: some are not bills (executive orders, rules, referendums, or budgets), and some are proposals or prior-session measures the live tracker does not currently carry.

  • SB 3199 Mental Health Emerging Therapies Task Force (psilocybin, MDMA study) (Passed both chambers but died in conference committee; SB 3199 is dead for the session and the task force was not established. (source))
  • HB 132 Cannabis expungement streamlining (auto-expungement up to 3 oz) (Enacted 2025)
Bill Title/Topic Chamber Status Sponsor(s)
SB 3275 Low-dose, low-potency adult cannabis use (5 mg THC, effective 2027), limited home grow Senate Advanced through 2 Senate committees Feb 18; died at crossover Sen. Joy San Buenaventura (D)
SB 2421 Adult-use legalization (companion to HB 1625); omits commercial sales Senate Heard in Senate; did not advance to enactment Sen. Joy San Buenaventura (D) (sponsor unconfirmed beyond Senate sourcing)
SB 1613 Decriminalize certain cannabis offenses; transfer functions to a Cannabis and Hemp Office Senate Carried over into 2026; no enactment confirmed Unconfirmed
HB 1625 Adult-use legalization (House companion to SB 2421) House Effectively dead for 2026 (House leadership) Unconfirmed
HB 519 Constitutional amendment (Article IX) on recreational cannabis House Carried over to 2026 regular session; not advanced Unconfirmed
SB 319 Marijuana possession decriminalization expansion (toward 15 grams) Senate Rejected by Senate Unconfirmed
SB 3199 Mental Health Emerging Therapies Task Force (psilocybin, MDMA study) Senate Passed both chambers but died in conference committee; SB 3199 is dead for the session and the task force was not established. (source) Sen. Chris Lee (D)
HB 1482 Hemp product distributor and retailer registration and enforcement House Signed into law July 2, 2025; effective Jan 1, 2026 Unconfirmed
HB 132 Cannabis expungement streamlining (auto-expungement up to 3 oz) House Enacted 2025 Unconfirmed

Trackers: https://www.capitol.hawaii.gov/advreports/main.aspx | https://legiscan.com/HI | https://www.marijuanamoment.net/?s=hawaii

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A planning snapshot for 2026, not legal advice. Policy moves quickly; confirm any single detail against the cited sources before acting on it. Sponsor names are given where confirmable and marked unconfirmed otherwise.

About the author. Jessica Mantonya is the founder of Drug Policy Watch and Hold in Common. She also advises operators, advocates, and funders on regulatory strategy and anti-enclosure positioning. Work with her →

Sources