A top Hawaii lawmaker says he will work to advance a bill this session that would put the question of marijuana legalization to voters after repeated failed efforts to enact the reform legislatively in recent sessions.
House Judiciary and Hawaiian Affairs Committee Chairman David Tarnas (D) previewed the plan in an interview with Honolulu Civil Beat that was published on Monday. Given the legislature’s evident reluctance to end prohibition on its own despite public support for legalization, he said the issue ought to be decided by voters.
“This is kicking this particular policy decision—very selectively—to the public for a decision,” Tarnas, who has previously sponsored legalization and other marijuana reform bills, said.
While Gov. Josh Green (D) supports legalizing cannabis, and polling has indicated that Hawaiians are ready for the policy change, the chairman is signaling that he doesn’t anticipate that the legislature will be ready to move forward with a legislative reform this year but may instead be inclined to defer to voters.
House Speaker Nadine Nakamura (D) has acknowledged broad public support for marijuana legalization, but said that some of her chamber’s members from the island of Oahu are not on board with the reform.
Putting legalization on
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