SB3275

SECTION 1. The Hawaii Revised Statutes is amended by adding a new chapter to be appropriately designated and to read as follows:

"Chapter

Low-Dose and Low-potency cannabis

Part I. General Provisions

§ -1 Definitions. As used in this chapter:

"Cannabinoid" means any of the various naturally occurring, biologically active, chemical constituents of the plant of the genus Cannabis that bind to or interact with receptors of the endogenous cannabinoid system.

"Cannabis" has the same meaning as marijuana and marijuana concentrate as provided in sections 329-1 and 712-1240; provided that for the purposes of this chapter "cannabis":

(1) Includes:

(A) Cannabis flower and cannabis products;

(B) Medical cannabis; and

(2) Does not include hemp or manufactured hemp products authorized pursuant to chapter 328G.

"Cannabis accessories" means devices, equipment, materials, or products of any kind that are intended or designed for use in planting, propagating, cultivating, growing, harvesting, manufacturing, compounding, converting, producing, processing, preparing, testing, analyzing, packaging, repackaging, storing, or containing cannabis, or ingesting, inhaling, or otherwise introducing cannabis into the human body.

"Cannabis concentrate" means the separated resin, whether crude or purified, obtained, derived, or extracted from cannabis.

"Cannabis flower" means the flower of a plant of the genus Cannabis that has been harvested, dried, or cured, before any processing whereby the plant material is transformed into a cannabis product.

"Child care facility" has the same meaning as defined in section 346-151.

"Child-resistant" means designed or constructed to be significantly difficult for children under the age of five to open, and not difficult for average adults to use properly.

"Cultivate" or "cultivation" means cloning, curing, drying, grading, growing, harvesting, propagating, or trimming of low-dose and low-potency cannabis plants or hemp plants.

"Edible cannabis product" means a cannabis product intended to be used orally, in whole or in part, for human consumption, including cannabis products that dissolve or disintegrate in the mouth. "Edible cannabis product" does not include any product otherwise defined as cannabis concentrate.

"Hemp" has the same meaning as defined in section 328G-1.

"Low-dose and low-potency cannabis" means cannabis that:

(1) May be legally possessed or consumed by a person who is at least twenty-one years of age pursuant to this chapter; and

(2) Contains not more than:

(A) Five milligrams of tetrahydrocannabinol per serving, as defined by the department by rule; or

(B) If in liquid form, five milligrams of tetrahydrocannabinol per twelve ounces.

"Low-dose and low-potency cannabis" includes low-dose and low-potency cannabis products. "Low-dose and low-potency cannabis" does not include medical cannabis.

"Low-dose and low-potency cannabis plant" means the plant of the genus Cannabis that produces low-dose and low-potency cannabis in the seedling, vegetative, or flowering stages, with readily observable roots and leaves with serrated edges. "Cannabis plant" does not include a germinated seed, cutting, or clone without readily observable roots and leaves with serrated edges.

"Low-dose and low-potency cannabis product" means any product containing or derived from low-dose and low-potency cannabis, including an edible cannabis product, and cannabis concentrate. "Low-dose and low-potency cannabis product" does not include medical cannabis products.

"Manufactured hemp product" has the same meaning as defined in section 328G-1.

"Marijuana" has the same meaning as defined in section 712‑1240.

"Marijuana concentrate" has the same meaning as defined in section 712-1240.

"Medical cannabis" means cannabis that is dispensed by a medical cannabis dispensary for the medical use of cannabis pursuant to chapter 329D. "Medical cannabis" includes a medical cannabis product.

"Medical cannabis dispensary" has the same meaning as defined in section 329D-1.

"Medical cannabis product" means any product containing or derived from cannabis, including an edible cannabis product and cannabis concentrate, that is solely for medical use by a medical cannabis patient pursuant to chapter 329D.

"Medical use" means the acquisition, cultivation, possession, transportation, or use of cannabis or cannabis accessories relating to the administration of cannabis to alleviate the symptoms or effects of a medical cannabis patient's debilitating medical condition.

"Personal adult use" means the acquisition, cultivation, possession, transportation, or use of low-dose and low-potency cannabis or cannabis accessories by a person who is at least twenty-one years of age.

"Private residence" means a house, condominium, or apartment. "Private residence" does not include, unless otherwise authorized by law, dormitories or other on-campus college or university housing; bed-and-breakfast establishments, hotels, motels, or other commercial hospitality operations; and federal public housing, shelters, or residential programs.

"Process" or "processing" means to blend, compound, extract, infuse, or otherwise make or prepare a cannabis product.

"School" has the same meaning as defined in section 712‑1249.6.

"School vehicle" has the same meaning as defined in section 286‑181.

"Tetrahydrocannabinol" means the group of cannabinoids that function as the primary psychoactive component of cannabis.

§ -2 General exemptions. (a) Notwithstanding any law to the contrary, including part IV of chapter 329 and part IV of chapter 712, actions authorized pursuant to this chapter shall be lawful if done in strict compliance with the requirements of this chapter and any rules adopted pursuant to this chapter.

(b) A person may assert strict compliance with this chapter or rules adopted pursuant to this chapter as an affirmative defense to any prosecution involving marijuana or marijuana concentrate, including under part IV of chapter 329 and part IV of chapter 712.

(c) Actions that do not strictly comply with the requirements of this chapter and any rules adopted pursuant to this chapter shall be unlawful and subject to civil, criminal, or administrative procedures and penalties, or all of the above, as provided by law.

§ -3 Limitations; construction with other laws. Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to:

(1) Supersede any law relating to operating a vehicle under the influence of an intoxicant;

(2) Supersede any law involving the performance of any task while impaired by cannabis that would constitute negligence or professional malpractice, or prevent the imposition of any civil, criminal, or other penalty for the conduct;

(3) Supersede any law prohibiting or relating to smoking or vaping, including chapter 328J;

(4) Authorize the possession or use of cannabis or cannabis accessories on the grounds of or within a child care facility, school, daycare center, youth center, college, university, or other educational institution, including a nursery school or summer camp; school vehicle; or any correctional facility or detoxification facility; provided that a caregiver may administer a medical cannabis product that is not intended for inhalation to a medical cannabis patient under the age of twenty-one in a vehicle on school grounds; provided further that a college or university may authorize the possession or use of cannabis or cannabis accessories, including low-dose and low-potency cannabis or cannabis accessories, by persons who are at least twenty-one years of age on the grounds of or within the college or university in accordance with this chapter; or

(5) Require any person that occupies, owns, or controls real property to allow the consumption, cultivation, dispensing, display, distribution, or processing of cannabis on or within that property; provided that in the case of the rental of a residential dwelling, a landlord shall not prohibit the possession of cannabis or the consumption of cannabis that is not intended for inhalation, unless:

(A) The tenant is renting a room or rooms in only a portion of a residence, where the rest of the residence is rented to other people or occupied by the landlord;

(B) The residence is incidental to detention or the provision of counseling, educational, geriatric, medical, religious, or similar service;

(D) Failing to prohibit the possession or use of cannabis would violate federal law or regulations or cause the landlord to lose a monetary or licensing-related benefit under federal law or regulations.

Part iI. AUTHORIZED CONDUCT; SALE, Use, or cultivation of low-dose and low-potency CANNABIS

§ -11 Sale or use of low-dose and low-potency cannabis; protections. (a) Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, except as limited by this chapter, beginning January 1, 2027, it shall be lawful for persons who are at least twenty-one years of age to:

(1) Dispense or otherwise sell low-dose and low-potency cannabis to any person who is at least twenty-one years of age;

(2) Cultivate, store, transport, manufacture, process, possess, or possess with intent to distribute up to pounds of low-dose and low-potency cannabis for retail or dispensing purposes only;

(3) Smoke, ingest, or consume low-dose and low-potency cannabis;

(4) Purchase, transport, or possess up to ounces of low-dose and low-potency cannabis and up to grams of low-dose and low-potency cannabis products;

(5) Within a person's private residence only, possess up to ounces of low-dose and low-potency cannabis produced by their personal cultivation of cannabis pursuant to section -12; provided that not more than pounds of cannabis in total, whether for medical use or personal adult use of low-dose and low-potency cannabis, shall be stored at any private residence, regardless of the number of people residing there; and

(6) Purchase, obtain, transport, or possess cannabis accessories.

(b) All low-dose and low-potency cannabis that is dispensed by a business shall be stored in a sealed child-resistant and resealable packaging with original labels and not easily accessible to any person under the age of twenty‑one. All low-dose and low-potency cannabis cultivated for personal adult use shall be stored in a manner that is not easily accessible to any person under the age of twenty-one.

(c) All low-dose and low-potency cannabis shall be transported in a sealed container, shall not be visible to the public, and shall not be removed from its sealed container or consumed or used in any way while in a public place or vehicle.

(d) For the purposes of medical care, including organ and tissue transplants, a person's personal adult use of low-dose and low-potency cannabis in compliance with this part shall not constitute the use of an illicit substance or otherwise disqualify a person from medical care, unless in the judgment of the health care provider the use of low-dose and low-potency cannabis increases the risk for an adverse outcome from a medical procedure or treatment.

(e) No person shall be denied custody, visitation, or parenting time with a minor for conduct allowed under this part and no presumption of neglect or child endangerment shall arise therefrom; provided that this subsection shall not apply if the person's conduct creates a danger to the safety of the minor as established by a preponderance of the evidence.

(f) Except as provided in this chapter, the State and any of its political subdivisions shall not impose any discipline upon an employee or deny an employee any benefit or entitlement for conduct permitted under this part or solely for the presence of cannabinoids or cannabinoid metabolites in the urine, blood, saliva, breath, hair, or other tissue or fluid of a person who is at least twenty-one years of age, unless the failure to do so would cause the State or any of its political subdivisions to lose a monetary or licensing-related benefit under a contract or federal law, or otherwise violate federal law. This subsection shall not be construed to prohibit the State or any of its political subdivisions from:

(1) Conducting drug testing and using the results of those tests for the discipline of an employee if the testing is done to comply with federal requirements or in accordance with the applicable collective bargaining agreement; or

(2) Disciplining employees for being impaired by cannabis while at work.

§ -12 Personal cultivation of low-dose and low-potency cannabis. (a) Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, except as limited by this part, beginning January 1, 2027, it shall be lawful for persons who are at least twenty-one years of age to:

(1) Possess, plant, or cultivate not more than living low-dose and low-potency cannabis plants, whether mature or immature, for personal adult use only; and

(2) Harvest, dry, and process the low-dose and low-potency cannabis plants cultivated under paragraph (1) into low-dose and low-potency cannabis and low-dose and low-potency cannabis products for personal adult use only.

(b) Personal cultivation of low-dose and low-potency cannabis plants shall only be permitted within, or on the grounds of, a person's private residence; provided that not more than plants, whether mature or immature and whether for medical use or for personal adult use, shall be cultivated at a private residence at any time regardless of the number of people residing at the private residence.

(c) Low-dose and low-potency cannabis plants cultivated for personal adult use shall be kept in a secured place not easily accessible to any person under the age of twenty-one.

(d) Low-dose and low-potency cannabis plants cultivated for personal adult use shall not be visible to the public without the use of technology.

(e) A landlord, condominium association, planned community association, or similar association may limit or prohibit the personal cultivation of low-dose and low-potency cannabis plants through contracts, lease or rental agreements, bylaws, or rules.

(f) The department of commerce and consumer affairs shall adopt rules in accordance with chapter 91 to establish requirements and restrictions for the personal cultivation of low-dose and low-potency cannabis plants, including manners in which the low-dose and low-potency cannabis plant may be cultivated or processed into low-dose and low-potency cannabis and low-dose and low-potency cannabis products and further restrictions necessary to ensure that the personal cultivation of low-dose and low-potency cannabis plants is not utilized for illicit activity.

§ -13 Cannabis accessories; authorized. (a) Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, it shall be lawful for persons who are at least twenty-one years of age to manufacture, possess, possess with intent to distribute, or purchase cannabis accessories, or distribute or sell cannabis accessories to persons who are at least twenty-one years of age.

(b) This section is intended to meet the requirements of title 21 United States Code section 863(f) by authorizing, under state law, any person in compliance with this chapter to manufacture, possess, or distribute cannabis accessories.

Part iII. Administrative rules

§ -31 Administrative rules; authority. The department of commerce and consumer affairs shall adopt rules pursuant to chapter 91 to effectuate the purposes of this chapter."

SECTION 2. Section 712-1240.1, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by amending subsection (2) to read as follows:

"(2) It is an affirmative defense to prosecution for any marijuana-related offense defined in this part that the person who possessed or distributed the marijuana was authorized to possess or distribute the marijuana pursuant to chapter or for medical purposes pursuant to part IX of chapter 329."

SECTION 3. This Act does not affect rights and duties that matured, penalties that were incurred, and proceedings that were begun before its effective date.

SECTION 4. If any provision of this Act, or the application thereof to any person or circumstance, is held invalid, the invalidity does not affect other provisions or applications of the Act that can be given effect without the invalid provision or application, and to this end the provisions of this Act are severable.

SECTION 5. New statutory material is underscored.

SECTION 6. This Act shall take effect upon its approval.

INTRODUCED BY:	_____________________________

THE SENATE	S.B. NO.	3275
THIRTY-THIRD LEGISLATURE, 2026
STATE OF HAWAII