Reps heard two cannabis bills Wednesday deferring action on another; patient data legislation was calendared; preliminary schedules were published; and operating budgets were primed for amendment.
Here are some observations of the Washington State Legislature (WA Legislature) for Thursday March 27th, the 74th day of the 2025 regular session.
My top 5 takeaways:
- On Wednesday, the Washington State House Consumer Protection and Business Committee (WA House CPB) heard testimony on two bills regarding cannabis retail interests but deferred action on buffer zones.
- SB 5206 - Cannabis Retailer Advertising
- See the bill text, bill analysis, and fiscal note for more details.
- Positions: testifying + not testifying = total (duplicates)
- Pro: 5 + 2 = 7 (1)
- Con: 2 + 10 = 12 (0)
- Other: 1 + 0 = 1 (0)
- Julia Dilley, Public Health and Prevention Researcher
- Cannabis sector interests spoke in unanimous support for further business normalization and local control of retail trade name signs. Public health and prevention interests arrayed against the legislation, arguing tobacco industry research showed child “exposure” to advertising increased risk factors associated with future substance use.
- WASAVP Board Member Scott Waller acknowledged that his group was working with cannabis sector interests to craft an amendment that would shift their opposition to the bill. WACA Executive Director Vicki Christophersen later said her group was working with WASAVP on the language, which Chair Amy Walen indicated was essential to advancing the bill.
- Later that day, an executive session on the legislation was scheduled for the WA House CPB meeting on Tuesday April 1st.
- SB 5403 - Cannabis Retail Financial Interest
- See the bill text, bill analysis, and fiscal note for more details.
- Positions: testifying + not testifying = total (duplicates)
- Pro: 12 + 55 = 67 (7)
- WACA
- The Cannabis Alliance
- WCLA
- Producers NW
- Lux Pot Shop
- Hashtag Cannabis
- Washington Cannabis Workers Club (WCWC / UFCW 3000)
- Con: 0 + 3 = 3 (0)
- Other: 0 + 0 = 0 (0)
- Supporters of legislation to clarify the allowed scope of management agreements powerfully voiced unified perspectives from across the cannabis sector. Emphasizing the statutory limit of individual ownership to five retail stores, testifiers recounted stories of larger conglomerate organizations exercising buying power to suppress wholesale pricing, require one-sided deals, and force the end of multi-year partnerships.
- Later that day, an executive session on the legislation was scheduled for the WA House CPB meeting on Tuesday April 1st.
- Pro: 12 + 55 = 67 (7)
- 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 could 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.”
- Following the public hearings on Wednesday, Chair Amy Walen indicated the committee had decided to defer action on SB 5758.
- At publication time, an executive session on the legislation had not been rescheduled.
- SB 5206 - Cannabis Retailer Advertising
- Also on Wednesday, the Washington State Senate Rules Committee (WA Senate RULE) calendared the Washington State Liquor and Cannabis Board (WSLCB) request legislation regarding constrained access to patient data.
- HB 1341 - DOH Patient Data Sharing
- On Friday March 21st, the Washington State Senate Labor and Commerce Committee (WA Senate LC) recommended the patient data sharing legislation without a public hearing as the language remained identical to the companion SB 5700 heard on February 10th. The committee report was read on the Senate floor on Monday March 24th and the legislation referred to WA Senate RULE.
- During the meeting on Wednesday, Majority Caucus Vice Chair Annette Cleveland used her member pull to motion for the advance of HB 1341 to the Senate second reading calendar. The legislation was calendared in what appeared to be a unanimous voice vote.
- At publication time, the legislation could be added to an order of consideration, potentially amended, debated, and passed during a subsequent Senate floor session. If the legislation was not amended, it would have successfully passed both chambers and be sent to the Governor’s desk for consideration.
- HB 1341 - DOH Patient Data Sharing
- The preliminary schedules for the following week in the House and the Senate were published on Wednesday afternoon signaling plans for all active cannabis-related and -adjacent legislation ahead of the Opposite House Policy Committee Cutoff - with the exception of two bills.
- Monday March 31st
- 10:30am: WA Senate LC - Committee Meeting [ Event Details ]
- Tuesday April 1st
- 10:30am: WA Senate LC - Committee Meeting [ Event Details ]
- 1:30pm: WA House CPB - Committee Meeting [ Event Details ]
- Wednesday April 2nd
- COB: WA Legislature - Opposite House Policy Committee Cutoff
- To continue advancing through the fourth cutoff gateway of the 2025 regular session, legislation must be heard, have an executive session scheduled, then be potentially amended, debated, recommended, and reported by a policy committee before close of business on Wednesday April 2nd.
- There are exceptions. 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.
- To continue advancing through the fourth cutoff gateway of the 2025 regular session, legislation must be heard, have an executive session scheduled, then be potentially amended, debated, recommended, and reported by a policy committee before close of business on Wednesday April 2nd.
- COB: WA Legislature - Opposite House Policy Committee Cutoff
- Thursday April 3rd
- 1:30pm: WA House APP - Committee Meeting [ Event Details ]
- Public Hearing
- HB 2047 - Rescinding ESOP Transition Support
- Public Hearing
- 1:30pm: WA House APP - Committee Meeting [ Event Details ]
- Prospects for two bills remained uncertain at publication time.
- HB 2037 - Out of State Ownership + Social Equity Tax Preference + Cooperatives + Financial Interest
- On Tuesday in the Washington State House Finance Committee (WA House FIN), a lengthy and conflicted public hearing on the omnibus cannabis bill introduced after House of Origin Cutoff may have limited the legislation’s chances for further consideration in 2025.
- SB 5758 - Social Equity Buffer Zones
- While no signals were provided about the deferral of executive action on the legislation, opportunities for consideration had been further constrained on Monday March 24th when WA House CPB leadership cancelled their Friday March 28th meeting removing an opportunity to advance legislation before cutoff.
- At publication time, WA House CPB was scheduled to convene on Tuesday April 1st and Wednesday April 2nd at 1:30pm.
- It was uncertain if legislation recommended by House committees on Wednesday afternoon would be granted an opportunity to be reported as the chamber was scheduled to convene in session on Wednesday in the late morning, but only potentially at 12:30pm.
- See the Cannabis Observer 2025-26 biennium landing screen for a complete list of cannabis-related and -adjacent legislation being tracked.
- HB 2037 - Out of State Ownership + Social Equity Tax Preference + Cooperatives + Financial Interest
- Monday March 31st
- There were no introductions of cannabis-related legislation on Wednesday, and none staged for Thursday.
- There were no introductions scheduled in the Senate for Thursday.
- The draft introduction report in the House for Thursday March 27th did not appear to include any cannabis-related legislation.
- On Thursday, the operating budgets were scheduled for executive sessions in both chambers.
- 4pm: WA House APP - Committee Meeting [ Event Details ]
- Executive Session
- HB 1198 - Operating Budget
- At publication time, no amendments on the House version of the operating budget had been published.
- HB 1198 - Operating Budget
- Executive Session
- 4pm: WA Senate WM - Committee Meeting [ Event Details ]
- Executive Session
- SB 5167 - Operating Budget
- At publication time, 58 amendments on the Senate version of the operating budget had been published, none of which appeared to be cannabis-related.
- In a broadcast announcement by the Senate Democratic Caucus, senators indicated their intention to convene a floor session on Saturday March 29th to amend, debate, and advance SB 5167.
- In years past, House leadership then struck the Senate bill, replacing it with the WA House APP version of the budget which had been advanced in parallel. After floor debate, amendment, and passage in the House, senators requested a conference committee be formed consisting of the budget leaders of the four caucuses tasked with forging the final bill language. The conference committee report was then presented to each chamber for final passage.
- SB 5167 - Operating Budget
- Executive Session
- 4pm: WA House APP - Committee Meeting [ Event Details ]