WSLCB - Board Caucus
(May 3, 2022)

Here are some observations from the Tuesday May 3rd Washington State Liquor and Cannabis Board (WSLCB) Board Caucus.

My top 3 takeaways:

• Following the announcement of former Member Russ Hauge’s early retirement from the board in December 2021, Jim Vollendroff was confirmed as his successor on March 14th.
  • Hauge was circumspect as to the reason for leaving early during his departure revelation in December. The longest-serving active member of the board, he emphasized striving to serve the agency “with sincerity, fairness, and dedication to justice. I am proud of our work together and for having had the opportunity to serve.”
    • Hauge was reappointed by Inslee in February 2017 to a term running until January 15th, 2025. A former Kitsap County Prosecutor, he also formerly chaired the Washington State Sentencing Guidelines Commission.
    • Hauge was credited with a “passion for fighting for the concerns of small businesses, particularly members of the cannabis industry...Further, he strongly advocated for equity within the cannabis marketplace so that the Board delivered on the expectations of the voters who approved legalization in 2012” and led “the Board’s efforts to protect the licensed marketplace by ensuring chemically-derived, unregulated Delta-8 THC was prohibited for purchase or sale.”
    • Hauge became a focus of criticism for the agency during the 2019 legislative session when he was faced with allegations of promoting a heavy-handed regulatory culture within WSLCB.
    • At publication time, Hauge’s LinkedIn profile sported a self-styled title of “Housebroken Prosecutor, Retired.”
  • Governor Jay Inslee appointed Jim Vollendroff on March 14th to serve the balance of Hauge’s term until 2025. The announcement highlighted Vollendroff’s key qualifications:
    • “35 years of experience in the behavioral health field” 
    • “Currently serv[ing] as the Behavioral Health Senior Advisor for Policy and Advocacy for the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at the University of Washington (UW)” 
    • “founding Director of the Harborview/UW Medicine Behavioral Health Institute” where he sought “to innovate and improve the delivery of mental health and addiction services and to implement and disseminate research-based practices.”
    • 16 years “in top leadership roles at the King County Department of Community and Human Services,” which included “five years as Director the King County Behavioral Health and Recovery Division.”
  • Inslee was quoted as saying Vollendroff “brings a unique perspective and life experience to the board that is completely new and will be enormously valuable.” He made clear his choice had been impacted by “a Jan. 19, letter of support…signed by 22 legislators” arguing that beyond his professional experience “we deeply value his lived experience as a person in recovery from both mental health and substance use challenges and as a biracial member of the LGBTQ community.”
    • The letter was signed by Democrats in the legislature:
      • President Pro Tempore Karen Keiser
      • Senator Manka Dhingra
      • Senator David Frockt
      • Senator Jamie Pedersen
      • Speaker Laurie Jinkins
      • Representative Dan Bronoske
      • Representative Lisa Callan
      • Representative Frank Chopp
      • Representative Eileen Cody
      • Representative Lauren Davis
      • Representative Davina Duerr
      • Representative Mari Leavitt
      • Representative Nicole Macri
      • Representative Tina Orwall
      • Representative Gerry Pollet
      • Representative Cindy Ryu
      • Representative Tana Senn
      • Representative Tarra Simmons
      • Representative Jamila Taylor 
      • Representative My-Linh Thai 
      • Representative Steve Tharinger
      • Representative Amy Walen
  • Chair David Postman and Member Ollie Garrett offered brief remarks on Vollendroff’s appointment on March 15th and Executive Assistant Dustin Dickson noted he’d been getting Vollendroff agency “issued devices and setting up his calendar” on April 26th.
  • Prior to Vollendroff, the most recent addition to the board was Postman, who formally joined in March 2021. Garrett’s term was set to expire on January 15th, 2023.

• Vollendroff introduced himself and Board Chair David Postman made several comments about the nature of their caucus meetings and the qualities Vollendroff could potentially bring to the WSLCB.
  • Postman welcomed Vollendroff on “his first official day” and described him as coming “from the behavioral health field.” He acknowledged Vollendroff’s last role as Behavioral Health Senior Advisor for Policy and Advocacy for the UW Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, yet suggested the “apex” of his experiences in the field came from being the first director of the Harborview/UW Medicine Behavioral Health Institute. Postman felt Vollendroff’s work in a variety of “public agencies over the years” would serve him well at WSLCB. He’d become "well known among lawmakers and policymakers and others" as evidenced by his January letter of support (audio - 2m, video). 
  • Vollendroff shared his excitement at the opportunity to be on the board and work with Postman, Garrett, and staff at WSLCB. He’d been “really impressed” with his onboarding at the agency and the “engagement in the community.” Postman was happy to have “a full board” though both Postman and Garrett were looking forward to scheduling some time off. Postman indicated the group would encounter “a pretty chunky agenda” at their next board meeting on May 11th (audio - 2m, video). 
  • Postman talked about the cadence of board caucuses, telling Vollendroff there was flexibility in the agenda with “room there to do things” (audio - 5m, video).  
    • Vollendroff was “seeing this as a career change.” Among his experiences in behavioral health, he’d been “a provider for many years before I went into public policy” meaning he’d worked “on the business side, if you will, of behavioral health.” He was looking forward to learning from the “organizations and licensees” WSLCB regulated, and promised to approach his engagements with an attitude of helping them “thrive, while taking serious, the role and responsibilities and the mission of the organization around public safety.”
    • Vollendroff felt his behavioral health knowledge would be “a great addition to the board” but he was also “naturally curious” and would be learning more about WSLCB and the industry “in the coming months.” Postman called the “new” cannabis sector a “fascinating” one and Vollendroff remarked it was “evolving fast."
    • The group agreed further research would help their decision making, with Postman mentioning a funding “bump” for UW and Washington State University (WSU) in the state’s 2022 supplemental operating budget. He brought up a recent meeting with Senator Keiser who encouraged Director Rick Garza and Postman to “be in touch with the universities, tell ‘em what you’re looking for.” Postman found most regulators had to work to stay “up with the science,” but the challenge was heightened at WSLCB, where they often “play catch up.”
    • His history with UW researchers was another way Vollendroff thought he could add value to the agency's work. He noted an online presentation “funded by the Garvey Institute” for Brain Health Solutions (GIBHS) about "Catching up on Cannabis Science" taking place that Friday, and promised to bring relevant research and experts “to the table.”
      • Jason Kilmer, a UW Associate Professor in Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, previously presented this topic to “New England prevention professionals” through the federally funded New England Prevention Technology Transfer Center.
  • Postman inquired whether Vollendroff had spoken with Public Health Education Liaison Mary Segawa. Vollendroff replied that he planned to meet with her “later today or tomorrow” (audio - <1m, video).
  • Vollendroff was encouraged to look at what internal groups and efforts were underway at WSLCB and get involved in any he was interested in. One thing that Postman felt needed to be addressed were “the advisory councils [for cannabis and alcohol], and what we envision there.” Vollendroff credited Dickson as “extremely helpful” since he started with the board. He was interested in joining the internal "Health and Wellness" group, finding that the topic was “an important part of my own personal recovery, and own personal journey.” Postman disclosed that Vollendroff recently “ran the Boston Marathon” for the second time, and reflected that more involvement in internal entities at WSLCB was something he himself should do (audio - 4m, video). 

• A review of Vollendroff’s previous work shed more light on his various contributions in the fields of behavioral health, substance abuse, and homelessness.
  • Before voters passed Initiative-502, Vollendroff was one of many public health officials concerned about youth use of cannabis, voicing concerns over early initiation of drug use by youth and increasing cannabis potency in reporting from 2007. In 2008, as a Reclaiming Futures Treatment Fellow, Vollendroff helped draft a “Washington State strategic plan on adolescent substance abuse treatment.” 
  • A 2014 article on a Washington Supreme Court ruling that “warehousing mentally ill patients in hospital emergency rooms because there isn't space at certified psychiatric treatment facilities is unlawful” quoted Vollendroff as King County’s “top mental-health official.” In the story, he said the formerly lawful practice of "psychiatric boarding" was something the county had already worked to end, but it had been jarring “when we learn one morning that something we've been practicing for many, many years is deemed unconstitutional." That November he was part of a legislative forum of city leaders, providing “​​key legislative priorities for the upcoming year, and highlight innovations and outcomes in behavioral healthcare in the community.”
  • Vollendroff opened up about his mental health and addiction recovery journey in November 2016 on the Recovery Coast to Coast (RC2C) podcast while he was serving as Director of the King County Behavioral Health and Recovery Division. During his time with the division he was involved in the creation of several annual reports on Mental Illness and Drug Dependency. Vollendroff also prepared a February 2018 presentation on “The Intersection of Behavioral Health and the Criminal Justice System” for the division.
  • Besides his work for local governments and UW, he had past affiliations with:
    • The Sobering Center, where he was mentioned in a 2017 news story on the homeless and behavioral health resource center, which closed in 2019.
    • Vollendroff was one of the organizers of the first Washington Mental Health Summit in 2018. At publication time, the 2022 summit was scheduled for May 17th.
    • In July 2021, Vollendroff’s work to help one homeless Washingtonian was included as part of a profile by the Seattle Times. That November, Vollendroff was among those interviewed for the outlet’s story “How to fix Washington’s mental and behavioral health care system? 4 experts weigh in.”
    • Vollendroff had also been a senior advisor to citiesRISE, according to an inactive Twitter profile.