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Home My WebLink AboutCOM 0102.052 2000-2002 4E OF y, ~Pr ~v~T 4h/ 1G6• 1 ~L~LIV t~ ~3151,aelfl BENJAMYN J. CAYETAN® °j ~ ` ~ ~s DIRF,CT®IL GOVERNOR ~ ~9ii~._.eb~.___..a- _°--°-,s.,._.-.~ __.._.~Ii~~® e~ o ~•-.-~••-~~dJLHNE N. NA16SU0 'y ~ ~1P34y Cosendl Deputy Director t! Adrninisffiation Y'9.PKW.pi~'•. Po1AItIART E. TSUJ% STATE OF HAWAII ~p~' D~ector l~lm~e~~~~~~T ®la P~.B13L1C $a~~E'TY Corrections 919 Ala 6Noana Boulevard, 4th Floor SIDNEY A. IiAYAKAi3/A Honolulu, Hawaii 96814 Deputy' Director I.aw Enfokcement No. September 16, 2002 Ms. Rhonda Robison 73-4159 Kahauli Place Kailua-Kona, ~-Iawaii 96740 Dear Ms. Robison: Thank you for your letter of September 5, 2002, in which you expressed some of your ideas and concerns relating to medicinal marijuana. Let me respond to these issues, as you raised them. Count;,! Council's Condition # 5 This condition directly aflFects the Departments of the Attorney Cpeneral and Health, rather than our Department. l~Ievertheless, we have strong reservations about its viability and wisdom. This condition would require the State enter the marijuana distribution business. However, the State would not be able to control the supply level or the quality of the product. V6~ould the State be vulnerable to legal action if the product were inferior or contaminated, or if it did not have an adequate supply to distribute to persons with certificates? Moreover, the possession and distribution of marijuana is still illegal under the federal law. It would truly be unwise and irresponsible for the State government to knowingly engage in an activity prohibited by law. The Medical Marihuana Program is Currently in the Wrong Department Please understand that the Department of Public Safety (PSD) did not ask for responsibility for this program. In fact, the initial drafts of the legislation placed the program within the Department of health. During the last stages of the 2000 Legislature, it was decided that our Department would become responsible. I believe that the Legislature made this decision because it wanted to establish the program as a demonstration at first. Please remember that we are among the very first states to have such a program. Therefore, strict controls were needed to insure that the program was implemented within the specific constraints established in the legislation. PSD already regulates pharmaceuticals, and registers persons who prescribe, dispense and distribute (lo~Yain. Noa Pile ~dcaa ref, `~o: "An Equal Opportunity Employer/Agency" Rhonda M. Robin®n Septeanber 16, 2002 Page 2 pharmaceuticals. Moreover, PSD is responsible for the administration of the laws regulating controlled substances. Marijuana is a controlled substance, under both the state and federal laws. Therefore, the Legislature determined that PSD would be in the best position to insure that the law was implemented effectively. If you believe that the Department of Health, rather than PSD, should administer this law, I urge you to work through your legislators. Only they have the authority to make this change. Flaws in the Current Law We agree that there are flaws in the current law. If you could provide a specific proposal to remedy these flaws, we would be glad to consider them for inclusion in the legislation we plan to submit to the 2003 Legislature. No Need for the Hawaii Count~Police Department to Nave Access to Personal Medical Records We totally agree with this. Our Rules do not permit this, and we strictly adhere to our Rules. We provide information to a bona fide law enforcement agency only if they ask if a specific person is a registered user or caregiver. And we only provide identifying information. We do not provide medical information, we do not provide any information unless it is solicited by a bona fide law enforcement agency, and we do not provide information unless the request is specific. Medical Marijuana Supplement Program You propose that a program be created to allow medical marijuana patients to donate an overflow of an adequate supply to other patients. There are two important legal problems with this proposal. First, I-iawaii's law allows a certified patient and a registered caregiver to jointly possess an adequate supply of marijuana. "Adequate supply" is clearly defined as the amount jointly possessed by the patient and the caregiver "that is not more than is reasonably necessary to assure the unintemapted availability of marijuana for the purpose of alleviating the symptoms or effects of the qualifying patient's debilitating medical condition...." As I read the law, there cannot be an "overflow" of adequate supply. Such overflow would be in violation of the definition of adequate supply. The second serious problem with the proposal is that it would violate the federal law. What you propose seems very similar to the clubs involved in the case of United States v Oakland Cannabis Puyers Cooperative. In that case, the U.S. Supreme Court decided that the club violated the federal Controlled Substances Act. We cannot and will not support a proposal that we believe would violate federal law. I hope this addresses your concerns, and clarifies our position relating to the various issues you raised. Please be assured that our Department will continue to administer Rhonda M. Robison September 16, 2002 Page 3 the medical marijuana program in an objective a manner as is possible, and in a manner that is consistent with the law. We believe that the program has been successful. Perhaps it can be made better, and perhaps the law can be improved. Again, I urge you to work with your legislators if you seek changes to the law. Very truly yours, TED SAKAI Director TS:wsf c: Hawaii County Council Members Dominic Yagong hobby Jean Leihead-Todd James Arakaki _ Chairman f Aaron Chung Gary Safarik Julie Jacobson Nancy Pisicchio J. Curtis Tyler III Leningrad Elarionoff Keith Kamita, NED Administrator Herman Moore, Deputy Director-Law Enforcement