WA Governor - Bill Action
(May 13, 2019) - HB 1794

HB 1794 – “Concerning agreements between licensed marijuana businesses and other people and businesses, including royalty and licensing agreements relating to the use of intellectual property.”

  • See Cannabis Observer’s summary of HB 1794's committee report cutoff, opposite house cutoff, and sine die cutoff.
  • On Monday May 13th, Governor Inslee signed the bill. It is awaiting placement in the 2019 Session Laws and assignment of a formal effective date by the SOS. See the signing ceremony’s official photo and read the Bill as Passed Legislature.
  • Inslee explained the bill “sets clear standards” on intellectual property in the cannabis industry to “help small marijuana businesses in sharing brand names and technologies” comparable to other industries. Inslee thanked Stanford, the bill sponsor, for helping the cannabis sector “grow in a respectful way.” Keiser also attended (video).
  • The legislation will be funded from the Dedicated Marijuana Account in Section 143(4) of the recently passed budget with $23,000 in both FY 2020 and FY 2021. This is in line with the estimate for that time period in the bill’s final fiscal note.