STAND. COM. REP. NO. 1149-26

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2026

RE: H.B. No. 1550

H.D. 2

Honorable Nadine K. Nakamura

Speaker, House of Representatives

Thirty-Third State Legislature

Regular Session of 2026

State of Hawaii

Madame:

Your Committee on Judiciary & Hawaiian Affairs, to which was referred H.B. No. 1550, H.D. 1, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO HEALTH,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to exclude additional drug checking tools from the definition of drug paraphernalia under the Uniform Controlled Substances Act.

Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Department of Health; State Health Planning and Development Agency; Drug Policy Forum of Hawaiʻi; and one individual.

Your Committee finds that the State continues to face an unpredictable and increasingly dangerous illicit drug supply, with contaminants such as fentanyl, xylazine, and medetomidine contributing to accidental overdoses and preventable deaths. Your Committee further finds that drug checking tools, ranging from test strips to more advanced technologies, provide individuals and service providers with critical information that reduces overdose risk and improves engagement with health services. Your Committee believes that expanding legal access to these tools will strengthen community harm reduction efforts, improve early detection of emerging drug threats, and ultimately save lives by empowering people with accurate information.

Your Committee has amended this measure by making technical, nonsubstantive amendments for the purposes of clarity, consistency, and style.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Judiciary & Hawaiian Affairs that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 1550, H.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Third Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 1550, H.D. 2.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Judiciary & Hawaiian Affairs,

____________________________

DAVID A. TARNAS, Chair