Hawaii House Committee Unanimously Votes To Protect Medical Marijuana Patients From Employment Discrimination

A House panel in Hawaii has advanced legislation that would protect state-registered medical marijuana patients from discrimination in the workplace.

The bill, HB 325, would prevent employers from using a person’s status as a medical marijuana cardholder against them when making hiring, firing or other employment-related decisions, with some limitations. It would also bar discrimination based on a registered patient’s positive drug test for cannabis or metabolites provided the person is not impaired on the job.

“The ongoing conflict between state and federal medical cannabis laws causes confusion for employers, who are unsure whether state medical cannabis laws supersede their power to enforce drug-free workplace policies against employees,” the measure’s introductory text says. “The courts have consistently ruled in favor of employers when qualifying patients challenge drug-free workplace policies, yet have not entirely foreclosed on the possibility that state medical cannabis laws might operate to protect qualifying patients against employment discrimination.”

“Without explicit statutory guidance,” it continues, “the courts may not properly balance the needs of qualifying patients for employment protections and an employer’s need to provide a safe workplace.”

The protections would apply to both public and private employees, though it would not extend to law enforcement or corrections workers, state and county firefighters, emergency medical workers, lifeguards or swim instructors, people who carry firearms on the job, people who operate vehicles or heavy machinery, emergency management workers, people who work with children or the elderly or people who administer controlled substances, among other carveouts.

Employers could also discriminate against medical marijuana patients if “a failure to do so would cause the employer to lose a monetary or licensing-related benefit under a contract or federal law.”

The bill also would shield employers from liability in the event of a worker’s injury or death if “impairment by medical cannabis was the sole contributing factor.”

On Tuesday, the House Committee on Labor took testimony on the bill and voted unanimously, 6–0, to advance it with a minor technical amendment.

The proposal has the support of the state Department of Health, which said in written testimony that medical marijuana patients “should not be treated differently from those using other legal medications.”

“In Hawaii, a healthcare provider must determine that medical cannabis is an appropriate treatment for a patient’s condition for them to qualify as a medical cannabis patient,” the department noted. “Once a medical provider has determined medical cannabis is necessary for treatment, the patient should not face discrimination by employers or the threat of termination due to the treatment of their medical condition. The protections afforded in HB325 are carefully designed to balance the rights of employers, ensure the safety of others, and safeguard the well-being of employee-patients.”

One of the groups opposing the change, meanwhile, is the Hawaii Food Industry Association, which represents food and beverage retailers, suppliers, producers and other businesses. A representative for the group told committee members Tuesday that the legislation would be impracticable because some of its members operate nationally and would be “unable to come up with employment policies that align with this and align with federal law.”

Nearly two dozen states already have some sort of employment discrimination protections for medical marijuana patients, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.

Prior to passage, committee members adopted an amendment to add a defective date, which is a procedural method of ensuring that the legislation receives additional discussion before being enacted.

Separately, lawmakers last week introduced legislation in both chambers that would legalize marijuana for adults and license a commercial retail market.

Sponsored by House Judiciary and Hawaiian Affairs Chair David Tarnas (D) and Senate Health and Human Services Committee Chair Joy San Buenaventura (D), the 311-page companion proposals would allow adults 21 and older to possess up to an ounce of marijuana and five grams of cannabis concentrate as of January 1, 2026. Adults could also grow limited amounts of marijuana at home for personal use.

The bills would also combine regulation of adult-use and medical marijuana, as well as hemp, under a single new agency: the Hawaii Cannabis and Hemp Office. Retail sales to adults would begin sometime next year, with taxes on nonmedical products set at 14 percent.

The new proposal comes after lawmakers last year fell short of passing a legalization bill. The Senate approved approved that measure last March, but, as with past efforts to end prohibition, it stalled out in the House of Representatives.

This past fall, regulators solicited proposals to assess the state’s current medical marijuana program—and also sought to estimate demand for recreational sales if the state eventually moves forward with adult-use legalization. Some read the move as a sign the regulatory agency saw a need to prepare to the potential reform.

Hawaii was the first U.S. state to legalize medical marijuana through its legislature, passing a law in 2000.

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Photo courtesy of Chris Wallis // Side Pocket Images.

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