WA House - Session - Afternoon
(April 6, 2021)

Here are some observations from the Tuesday April 6th Washington State House of Representatives (WA House) afternoon session.

My top 2 takeaways:

• Legislation to create a voluntary hemp processor registry and hemp extract certification was brought to the WA House floor without additional amendments.
  • SB 5372 ("Concerning a hemp processor registration and a hemp extract certification") was passed unanimously by the Washington State Senate (WA Senate) on March 9th. The bill received a public hearing on March 19th in the Washington State House Commerce and Gaming Committee (WA House COG) and was passed unanimously by that committee on March 25th.
    • The Washington State Department of Agriculture (WSDA) recently hosted webinars on the hemp program, hemp pesticides and organics, and hemp plant services. A fourth webinar on hemp exports and food safety was scheduled for Wednesday April 7th at 1pm.
  • Deputy Speaker Pro Tempore John Lovick asked staff to bring the engrossed bill language up for second reading and confirmed no amendments had been offered (audio - <1m, video).

• A few final remarks were offered on the bill before it was passed by the WA House with only one representative from each party opposing the bill’s delivery to the Governor.
  • Lovick asked for consent to consider the second reading as the third and final reading and heard no objection. He then opened the floor to remarks on SB 5372 (audio - <1m, video).
  • Representative Shelley Kloba told her colleagues that those who had “been watching the activities that we’ve been doing here...will have noticed that there are several themes that a lot of the bills, kind of, coalesce around.” She said one such theme was “helping our Washington businesses revive and thrive in this really difficult economic climate.” Kloba observed that SB 5372 was such a bill as it would “open new markets to our hemp growers and processors” by creating a “new definition for hemp processor, it creates a hemp processor registration,” and it “creates a voluntary hemp extract certification.” The “three small changes” in the bill would help Washington hemp companies “access new markets in other” countries and states, Kloba said in a closing call for support (audio - 2m, video).
  • Assistant Minority Floor Leader Drew MacEwen seconded Kloba’s remarks, saying “it will also help us with our interstate commerce for our hemp producers, this is a good bill.” He said the bill continued a series of changes expanding hemp agriculture, adding “another segment to our economy” (audio - 1m, video).
  • Lovick instructed staff to begin a roll call vote on SB 5372 which resulted in “96 yeas, two nays, zero excused” (audio - 1m, video). The members who opposed passage were:
    • Representative Mary Dye
    • Representative Mari Leavitt
  • Lovick said SB 5372 received a constitutional majority and was “declared passed” by the WA House. As the bill had not been changed since passage by the Senate, it would be signed by:
    • Speaker of the House Laurie Jinkins
    • WA House Chief Clerk Bernard Dean
    • Lieutenant Governor Denny Heck, President of WA Senate
    • Secretary of the Senate Brad Hendrickson
  • The bill would then be delivered to Governor Jay Inslee as ‘enrolled legislation’ he can sign, veto, or partially veto before it becomes law. Since the bill was passed more than five days before adjournment of the session, once delivered to his office Inslee has five days to act on a bill. If no action is taken, the bill automatically becomes law. As no effective date was declared in the bill text, the law would become effective 90 days after the end of session. WSDA was anticipated to undertake substantial rulemaking to implement the bill should it become law.