is Hawai‘i's leading organization dedicated to safe, responsible, and effective drug policies.
As the premiere drug policy reform organization in Hawai‘i we've worked at the Drug Policy Forum of Hawai‘i to safeguard the rights of sick and dying patients and their physicians under the state medical marijuana law; conducted and commissioned research on policy issues and implementation; fought for reasonable approaches on drug testing, treatment, and prevention; and focused public attention on implications and alternatives to the failed War on Drugs.
Our website offers in-depth information, resources, and ways you can act and get involved on critical policy issues and developments. If you have questions or seek additional information, please contact us. And we hope you'll consider becoming a member of the Drug Policy Forum of Hawai‘i and join the growing movement for reasonable and responsible drug policy in our state.
October 19, 2009: Attorney General Eric Holder today announced formal guidelines for federal prosecutors in states that have enacted laws authorizing the use of marijuana for medical purposes.
June 16, 2009: Tweaking Medical Marijuana Legislation Aired in Hawaii Public Radio Nine years ago this week the Hawai‘i Legislature became the first in the nation to approve the use of medical marijuana. But now advocates are pushing for a study of what they say are serious flaws with the legislation. HPR's Ben Markus reports.
February 5, 2009, in Conference Room 309 House held a hearing in February 2009 to consider the ramifications of decriminalizing marijuana possession. Study finds Hawai‘i would save $5 Million.
The Medical Use of Marijuana: A Guide to Hawai'i's Law for Physicians, Patients and Caregivers, Second Edition (August 2008) Is a comprehensive 12 page document published by the DPFH and included the wording of the law and other background information. The document can downloaded here. If you cannot access this document from your computer, please contact us (by email or postal mail) and we will send you a copy in the mail.
In addition to the law you may also want to check: Chapter 23-202, Hawai'i Administrative Rules for Medical Use of Marijuana, adopted December 14, 2000.
These Administrative Rules are the procedures that the Narcotics Enforcement Division must follow in administering the medical use of marijuana program. They are more detailed than the law that established the program. For example one of the rules states: "523-202-6 (c) Qualifying patients and their primary caregivers may apply for renewal not earlier than sixty days prior to the expiration date of their certificate." To download the complete 18 pages PDF file, please click here
The Budgetary Implications of Marijuana Decriminalization and Legalization for Hawai‘i Economic analysis of current public policies on marijuana reveals that Hawai‘i state and county governments could reap up to $33 million annually in new revenues and cost savings if tax and regulatory policies were to replace law enforcement to control marijuana distribution. Furthermore, research indicates that enforcement expenditures of up to $10 million each year statewide have failed to reduce the amount of marijuana available in Hawai‘i. The PDF file of the complete 22 page document "The Budgetary Implications of Marijuana Decriminalization and Legalization for Hawai‘i" by Lawrence Boyd can be downloaded here.
A survey of substance abuse prevention education programs in Hawai‘i schools.
Policy makers and educators continue to debate the presence and effects of substance abuse in Hawai‘i, specifically, government and community efforts to address this threat through substance abuse prevention education programs in Hawai‘i schools. This capstone project focuses and creates a snapshot inventory of substance abuse prevention education programs in Hawai‘i schools, particularly programs that are federally recognized, while attempting to discover the appropriateness of substance abuse prevention curricula. Surveying 257 K-12 public schools and forty-five private schools throughout the state, with assistance from the Safe and Drug Free Schools program of the Office of Curriculum and Instruction of the Department of Education, the capstone project team uses a questionnaire as the survey instrument. In addition, asking forty randomly selected schools to be contributors to an in-depth written interview, the project captures opportunities for future research and studies. The PDF file of the complete 42 page document "A survey of substance abuse prevention education programs in Hawai‘i schools." From 2004 by Ann Ishida-Ho, William Kunstmann, Carrie Shoda-Sutherland and Marly Wilson can be downloaded here.
