Bill > SR63

This Resolution formally requests the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), a federal agency responsible for enforcing drug laws, to help the Hawaii Department of Health secure a federal exemption for the state's authorized use of cannabis. This action is being taken because of the ongoing conflict between state and federal laws regarding cannabis, which has negatively impacted Hawaii's medical cannabis patients and licensed businesses. The resolution acknowledges that states generally have the authority to regulate cannabis within their borders and references the Rohrabacher-Farr Amendment, a federal law that restricts the DEA from interfering with state-sanctioned medical cannabis programs, as a basis for seeking this exemption.