Board members welcomed a new deputy director and were brought up to speed on the Joints for Jabs program, external meetings involving agency staff, and ongoing rulemaking projects.
A few attendees offered input on draft changes to the agency criminal background check evaluation process applied during cannabis license applications and renewals.
As a social equity task force work group began considering how to distribute $3.62M in grants, another task force prepared to disband, leaving cannabis science under the care of regulators.
Board members considered “two separate issues” raised by the process of converting hemp biomass into cannabinoids leading up to a deliberative dialogue on cannabis plant chemistry.
Governor Inslee signed the biennium operating budget which appropriated cannabis excise tax revenue and other general fund tax dollars among more than a dozen agencies.
Governor Inslee signed a legislative response to a court case which invalidated the state drug possession statute, and lawmakers allotted more than $172 million to address the ruling.
This week would include interesting events covering a broad spectrum of cannabis-related topics including social equity, behavioral health, delta-8-THC, and substance use prevention.
The board chair responded to public comments on incentivizing coronavirus vaccination, the safety of converting hemp distillate into THC, and inaction towards business normalization.
A presentation and discussion on retail store allotments surveyed available licenses and the results of outreach by agency staff to jurisdictions maintaining local bans and moratoria.
Board members shared their evolving understanding of the conversion of hemp biomass into cannabinoids like delta-8-THC, and expressed interest in relevant policies adopted or under consideration elsewhere.
