WA Legislature - Update
(March 26, 2025)

WA Legislature - Update (March 26, 2025) - Takeaways

Legislators heard the omnibus, production unions, and data dashboard bills on Tuesday and planned to hear two more Wednesday in addition to moving legislation that could revise buffer zone measurement.

Here are some observations of the Washington State Legislature (WA Legislature) for Wednesday March 26th, the 73rd day of the 2025 regular session.

My top 4 takeaways:

  • On Tuesday, the Washington State House Finance Committee (WA House FIN) hosted a lengthy public hearing on an omnibus cannabis bill introduced after cutoff.
    • HB 2037 - Out of State Ownership + Social Equity Tax Preference + Cooperatives + Financial Interest
      • Representative Melanie Morgan introduced revenue generating legislation on March 13th—the day after the House of Origin Cutoff—which was an amalgamation of multiple concepts which had largely not been advanced in 2025.
      • Legislation can be designated “necessary to implement budgets” (NTIB) by chamber leaders to exempt it from the regular rules of order, loosely interpreted to mean a bill was projected to have a measurable fiscal impact.
        • As well, committee leaders sometimes schedule hearings on bills which cannot technically be advanced further during the first half of the legislative biennium to evaluate concepts and prepare members to consider the legislation during the subsequent short session.
        • Chair April Berg offered no signals during the hearing about the legislation’s status nor her intent in scheduling the legislation.
      • Positions: testifying + not testifying = total (duplicates)
      • Representatives heard a panoply of reasons for and against the legislation interspersed with accusations, assumptions, and fears should the bill be passed or not passed.  The vast majority of testimony focused on the allowance for out of state ownership, though participants did acknowledge the prime sponsor for bringing disparate voices to her table in a first attempt to hash out compromises between entrenched cannabis sector interests.
      • WSLCB Director of Legislative Relations Marc Webster offered ostensibly “Other” testimony to inveigh against the provision of out of state ownership as it would undercut ongoing litigation around the social equity program regarding the eligibility of out of state applicants.  He signaled the agency would be freighting the bill with a substantial fiscal note in anticipation of increased legal and administrative costs.
  • There were no introductions of cannabis-related legislation on Tuesday, and none staged for Wednesday.
    • There were no introductions planned in the Senate for Wednesday March 26th and the draft introduction report in the House did not appear to include any cannabis-related legislation.
  • On Wednesday, the Washington State House Consumer Protection and Business Committee (WA House CPB) was scheduled to hear two cannabis-related bills and consider moving buffer zone legislation - potentially after a significant amendment that would reshape retail geography.
    • 1:30pm: WA House CPB - Committee Meeting [ Event Details ]
      • Public Hearing
      • Executive Session
        • SB 5758 - Social Equity Buffer Zones
          • See the bill text, bill analysis, and fiscal note for more details.
          • On Monday, Representative Cindy Ryu published a proposed amendment which may reshape the geography of all cannabis retail in Washington state, not just social equity licensed businesses.
            • “Specifies that the measurement of the required minimum distance between a premises proposed to be licensed as a cannabis business and all the facilities identified in statute like elementary and secondary schools, playgrounds, recreation centers, and other facilities, must be measured along the most direct route over or across established public walks, streets, or other public passageway from the main entrance of the facility to the nearest public entrance of the premises proposed for license.”