While the WSLCB Board cancelled all of their meetings for the week, staff would host two focus groups, WSDA prepared a public hearing, and the obscure WIDAC quarterly meeting was up.
Here’s a look at cannabis-related policymaking events on the calendar in the week ahead.
Monday April 8th
At publication time, no cannabis-related policymaking events were scheduled.
Tuesday April 9th
WSLCB - Board Caucus
The weekly Washington State Liquor and Cannabis Board (WSLCB) Board Caucus was cancelled.
- [ Event Details ]
- In addition to hearing a fairly comprehensive rulemaking update during their caucus meeting on March 26th, members also discussed upcoming scheduling conflicts which would prevent the board from achieving quorum, eventually deciding to cancel all of their meetings for the week beginning April 8th (audio - 3m, video - TVW, video - WSLCB).
- The board subsequently also cancelled their Tuesday April 2nd caucus.
WSDA - Public Hearing - Cannabis Testing Lab Quality Standards
On Tuesday at 1pm PT, the Washington State Department of Agriculture (WSDA) planned to host a public hearing on the Cannabis Testing Lab Quality Standards proposed rules.
- [ Event Details, Rulemaking Project ]
- Underway since January 2023, WSDA staff continue to polish proposed rules to establish more robust quality standards which private cannabis testing labs must adhere to in order to retain WSLCB certification and WSDA accreditation beginning January 2025.
- In June 2023, WSDA staff hosted a webinar offering background on the draft rulemaking and method list for cannabis laboratory standards, during which stakeholders raised considerable concerns and questions around expense and implementation.
- After proposing rules in late November 2023, agency staff hosted a public hearing at the end of the year where lab representatives and other stakeholders pointed out discrepancies, redundancies, and costs related to proposed lab quality standards leading staff to ultimately choose to rework the rules.
- A revised CR-102 was filed at the end of February containing newly proposed rules which would be the subject of the hearing on Tuesday.
WSLCB - Focus Group - SB 5367 Implementation
On Tuesday at 3pm PT, the WSLCB Policy and Rules team planned to host a focus group on the SB 5367 Implementation rulemaking project.
- [ Event Details, Rulemaking Project ]
- After being signed into law in May 2023, SB 5367 took effect the following month, at which time board members approved a CR-101 to begin a rulemaking project. At that time rulemaking was forecast for completion in January 2024, but all completed rulemaking projects in 2023 and early 2024 were alcohol-related, with SB 5367 among projects initiated but delayed in 2023.
- An initial round of three focus groups were hosted by agency staff in mid-December 2023 and the newer set of public engagements began on March 26th. During the March 28th event looking at potential rulemaking to implement definitional and retail medical endorsement changes, various parties were interested in impacts for producing and selling hemp consumables in 502.
- On Thursday April 4th, WSLCB staff announced a revised and significantly expanded schedule for the pre-proposal focus groups on the rulemaking project. Having initially scheduled six focus groups ranging in duration from 30 minutes to 1.5 hours, the revised schedule added six more focus groups and allotted two hours for all ten remaining events.
- At publication time, WSLCB staff intended to host a total of 15 pre-proposal focus groups before possibly suggesting proposed rules in a CR-102. Focus groups were scheduled through mid-May, so the earliest a CR-102 could be filed would be Wednesday May 22nd.
- As part of the schedule change, the scope of the events on Tuesday and Friday were narrowed to cover “Personal possession and transaction limitations” (WAC 314-55-095) and the “Cannabis warning symbol requirement” (WAC 314-55-106).
- Review of potential changes and the opportunity for feedback on “Cannabis Product Packaging and Labeling” was deferred until the April 22nd and April 23rd events.
Wednesday April 10th
WSLCB - Board Meeting
The bi-weekly WSLCB Board Meeting was cancelled.
- [ Event Details ]
WSLCB - Executive Management Team
The monthly WSLCB Executive Management Team (EMT) meeting was cancelled.
- [ Event Details ]
- The EMT meeting, during which staff leadership are able to be held accountable by providing public updates on the work of their divisions, does not require a quorum to convene as no formal board decisions are ever made.
- The board also cancelled the March EMT meeting and did not reschedule it.
- Prior to 2022, WSLCB hosted EMT meetings weekly. After frequently cancelling those events, the agency switched to a monthly cadence the following year.
Thursday April 11th
WIDAC - Council Meeting
On Thursday at 9:30am PT, the Washington Impaired Driving Advisory Council (WIDAC) was scheduled to convene their quarterly meeting.
- [ Event Details ]
- The Council last convened on January 11th.
- The Washington Traffic Safety Commission (WTSC) convenes the WIDAC and provides web hosting for the group. In early February, the WIDAC meetings screen on the website was removed.
- Cannabis Observer reached out to WTSC Impaired Driving Program Manager Edica Esqueda to ensure they were informed and was told, “We are aware and I’m currently working on the best approach to get that information back up, likely sometime in the next Week or two. We may move that information to a different part of the website. More to come soon and thanks again.” At publication time, any information about WIDAC remained largely unavailable.
- Unlike the WTSC, the Tribal Traffic Safety Committee (TTSC), and the Active Transportation Safety Council (ATSC)—all of which proactively publish agendas, meeting presentations, summaries, and recordings of their public meetings—the WIDAC remains a willfully closed and opaque gathering which may be growing moreso.
Friday April 12th
WSLCB - Focus Group - SB 5367 Implementation
On Friday at 1:30pm PT, the WSLCB Policy and Rules team planned to host a focus group on the SB 5367 Implementation rulemaking project.
- [ Event Details, Rulemaking Project ]
- The focus group on Friday will also cover “Personal possession and transaction limitations” (WAC 314-55-095) and the “Cannabis warning symbol requirement” (WAC 314-55-106).
- While WSLCB staff have stated that “Both workshop sessions cover the same topics, so there is no need to attend both,” in practice, the events build on one another and include different participants with different points of view intending to address different concerns. Cannabis Observer remains committed to observing all WSLCB public policymaking activity.