The Week Ahead
(August 3, 2020)

WSLCB was scheduled to host a caucus and board meeting - but both would likely be remote even though the Governor authorized limited in-person public meetings for phase 3 counties.

Here’s a look at cannabis-related policymaking events on Cannabis Observer’s calendars in the week ahead.

Monday August 3rd

On Monday, the Washington State Liquor and Cannabis Board (WSLCB) COVID Legal/Policy/Rules Meeting was scheduled to recur.

  • [ Event Details ]
  • Agency staff leadership, Board Chair Jane Rushford, and Assistant Attorney General Bruce Turcott convene multiple times per week via webinar to discuss policy-related questions raised in the context of the pandemic.
  • Originally having met daily every work day, the schedule of meetings was shifted to 3x per week (M, W, F) on June 10th.

Tuesday August 4th

On Tuesday at 10am PT, the weekly WSLCB Board Caucus was scheduled to recur.

Wednesday August 5th

On Wednesday at 10am PT, the bi-weekly WSLCB Board Meeting was scheduled to recur.

  • [ Event Details ]
  • The Board previously planned three cannabis-related rulemaking actions for Wednesday, although two actions seemed increasingly unlikely.
    • The Board planned to adopt a CR-102 to propose rules which would establish a Voluntary Compliance Program. During the last rulemaking update provided to the Board by agency staff at the July 22nd Board Meeting, Policy and Rules Coordinator Casey Schaufler described the rulemaking project as “on track with the tentative CR-102 filing recommendation date of August 5th.”
    • The True Party of Interest rulemaking project’s CR-102 public hearing had been scheduled for August 5th, but Schaufler indicated the long-running effort could be further extended based on new information. Cannabis Observer surmised the delay could be related to a lawsuit challenging the legitimacy of in-state residency requirements for cannabis license applicants and true parties of interest.
    • When the Quality Control (QC) Testing and Product Requirements rulemaking project was re-filed in May, agency staff projected the Board would be asked to adopt a CR-103 or supplemental CR-102 on August 5th. On July 22nd, Schaufler indicated the rulemaking project “might be pushed back” to process comments received at the CR-102 public hearing on July 8th.
  • The Board will also hear general public comment, but individuals have thus far been asked to coordinate with WSLCB Executive Assistant Dustin Dickson prior to the board meeting to be granted an opportunity to speak. Contact dustin.dickson@lcb.wa.gov for additional instructions and a link to connect to the WebEx.
  • Washington State Governor Jay Inslee recently revised his COVID-19 proclamation regarding the Open Public Meetings Act to allow public agencies to host limited in-person public meetings in counties which had been granted phase 3 status under the Safe Start Washington Phased Reopening County-by-County Plan. Beginning with Proclamation 20-28.6 on July 2nd, qualifying public agencies were permitted “at their option and in addition to hosting the remote meeting elements described above, include an in-person component to a public meeting.” The requirements public agencies must meet to host in-person public meetings were slightly updated in Proclamation 20-28.8 issued on July 31st:
    • Compliance with all provisions of the Safe Start Washington Phased Reopening County-by-County Plan...including but not limited to adherence to the requirements that in-person gatherings are limited to the maximum number of persons allowed per the Phase of the county in which the public meeting is being held, and that all attendees are required to be separated by at least six feet and wear a face covering;
    • Compliance with all provisions of Proclamation 20-25 et seq. Safe Start - Stay Healthy,
    • Compliance with the Order of the Secretary of Health 20-03 [et seq.];
    • Notice of the physical location shall be included as required by RCW Chapter 42.30;
    • If an in-person component public meeting is offered, any person wishing to attend the public meeting in person must be able to do so at a physical location meeting all requirements herein, either in a primary meeting location or an overflow physical location that provides the ability for all persons attending the meeting to hear each other at the same time; and
    • If at any time during the public meeting the in-person component cannot comply with each of the requirements herein, the public meeting (to include the telephonic/remote access portions) must be recessed until compliance is restored or if compliance cannot be restored then it must be adjourned, continued, or otherwise terminated.
  • While it’s extremely unlikely the WSLCB will renew in-person meetings in the near future given the continued closure of the agency’s headquarters to the public and intent to permit staff to telework through September 30th, at publication time the agency was authorized to do so as Thurston County had achieved Safe Start phase 3.

On Wednesday at 10am PT, the WSLCB COVID Legal/Policy/Rules Meeting was scheduled to recur.

  • [ Event Details ]
  • As Cannabis Observer has no direct visibility into these policymaking meetings, we can only infer that the Board would not be represented at this particular meeting due to the overlap in schedule with the Board Meeting.

The weekly WSLCB Executive Management Team (EMT) meeting was cancelled.

  • [ Event Details ]
  • The last 25 regularly scheduled EMT meetings have been cancelled. The EMT last convened on Wednesday February 12th.
  • During the July 16th caucus, Board Chair Jane Rushford said “I feel it's important that we bring [EMTs] back.” She and Executive Assistant Dustin Dickson were “looking ahead to September” to refresh the EMT format, though she expected “we probably won’t do once a week, we don’t need to do that.” Nonetheless, Rushford expressed a need for “meaningful” meetings of WSLCB leadership (audio - 2m).
  • The Board calendar was subsequently updated to reflect Chair Rushford’s commitment, and all EMT meetings through August have been cancelled. Should the Board renew hosting EMT meetings during the first week in September, the agency will have gone 28 consecutive weeks without convening its Executive Management Team.

Friday August 7th

On Friday at 10am PT, the WSLCB COVID Legal/Policy/Rules Meeting was scheduled to recur.