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Hard to believe, but Hawaii is on the verge of taking its first significant step forward on the issue of medical marijuana since ours became one of the first states to legalize medical use 15 years ago.

As Civil Beat editorialized in January, the state Legislature once again this spring undertook efforts to create a dispensary system — an effort that had failed multiple times in previous sessions. But and have each passed both the Senate and House with strong support, and assuming resolution of remaining differences in conference between the two similar measures, one should soon be headed to Gov. David Ige for signature.

The legislation would finally address a legal contradiction the Legislature created in 2000 with passage of Act 228, allowing use of medical marijuana for seriously ill individuals. The law only allows for users to grow their own supply, and patients who can’t grow their own, have a caretaker do so or who are just bad gardeners are simply out of luck. More commonly, they turn to local pot dealers, running the risk of criminal charges in the process.

This is an issue affecting at least 13,000 qualifying patients around the state, perhaps many more, and the Legislature is to be commended for — finally — mustering the political will to resolve the dilemma it created years ago. Any lawmakers who fretted that this might be a politically risky move should be reassured by : Sixty-two percent of Hawaii registered voters who responded support medical marijuana dispensaries, while only 26 percent oppose the idea. That position is remarkably consistent across ages, genders and most ethnicities, and tracks with national polls, which show strong majority support.

That attitudinal shift has been fueled by the relaxation of federal laws relating to marijuana, first in 2009 through a revised prosecutorial policy announced by U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder and formally last year through a passed by Congress and signed by President Barack Obama. Twenty-four states plus Hawaii and the District of Columbia have now legalized medical use, and thousands of dispensaries are in business nationwide.

And so our state’s frustratingly slow movement on the dispensary system ultimately may come with bonuses: the ability for Hawaii’s law to be informed by best practices identified through the trial and error of other states and an environment largely free of risk from federal law enforcement or social condemnation by a critical public.

SB682 and HB321 indicate legislators have taken the examples of other states into account. Largely following the recommendations of the Medical Marijuana Dispensary Task Force’s to the Legislature, the bills allow for dispensary licenses to be offered to qualified applicants in Honolulu, Maui, Hawaii and Kauai counties, as early as this year in the House measure. To qualify, applicants would have to pay a pay a substantial and non-refundable application fee and hefty annual renewal fees. While the Senate measure hasn’t set those amounts, the application fee in HB321 is set at $25,000 and renewal fee, $50,000.

Some might criticize legislators for stopping short of giving the green light to recreational use. Civil Beat’s new poll indicates voter support is not there yet: Only 35 percent of respondents support that idea, while 59 percent are opposed.

The bills would similarly regulate medical marijuana production centers. In SB682, that would mean defining the allowable number of marijuana plants in any grow operation and requiring that each be assigned a numerical ID tag to be tracked in each center’s mandatory inventory tracking system. Both bills further charge the Department of Health with developing rules governing security requirements for each facility and employment standards that include criminal background checks and exclude convicted felons. The bills would also bar dispensaries or production centers from setting up shop near playgrounds, schools or public housing complexes.

While the bills would allow medical marijuana capsules, lozenges, oils and pills, they would not permit the sale of “edibles” that, while hugely popular in Colorado, have been linked to multiple deaths in that state. It is too easy for marijuana-laced cookies, candies, sodas and brownies to fall into the hands of children.

The medical marijuana products that would be allowed for sale, though, stand to benefit taxpayers far beyond those who medically consume pot: All sales would be subject to the state general excise tax. While there is no estimate yet for how much revenue that might generate, a 2012 study from the University of Hawaii estimated that outright legalization of pot might generate $11.3 million in new taxes and save the state $3 million in annual law enforcement and court costs.

Speaking of legalization, some might criticize legislators for stopping short of giving the green light to recreational use, despite such recent legalization in Colorado, Oregon, Washington and the District of Columbia. While that issue is certain to resurface in future legislative sessions, Civil Beat’s new poll indicates voter support is not there yet: Only 35 percent of respondents support that idea, while 59 percent are opposed.

That perhaps underscores the milestone step represented by these dispensary bills — one that it’s clear lawmakers are not taking lightly. The years they’ve spent considering the question and the depth of planning reflected in this legislation show they’re ready to move forward prudently. We encourage legislators to finish their work in conference and send the governor a bill that will be good for the thousands of medical marijuana patients around the state and good for Hawaii overall.