Washington State Department of Ecology
(DOE)

Pausing emergency rulemaking which would lower action levels for some pesticides didn’t preclude public comments critical of the approach taken by agency staff to the overall situation.

The board heard that details on emergency rules around potential soil contamination could wait until the following day’s board meeting, and staff also gave legislative and rulemaking updates.

The full House incorporated changes to THC legislation designed in committee and passed the measure, but only after formally ‘reconsidering’ their vote.

The Governor shared his thoughts on the supplemental budget before signing it; the measure created two hemp task forces, a community reinvestment fund, and other cannabis-centric changes.

The Governor signed a bill which changed non-binding cannabis revenue appropriations and mandated a study of those expenditures by the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Committee.

The governor signed the only non-controversial cannabis bill of the 2022 session into law, setting regulators up to form an interagency coordination team responsible for lab standards.

Staff briefed on a bill with complex changes to recommended cannabis tax appropriations before testimony emphasized benefits for transparency, social equity, and local governments.

A joint request bill to establish an interagency cannabis lab standards team was wholeheartedly supported by representatives of the agencies which drafted the legislation.

After pushback for not acting earlier, council members formally and unanimously endorsed all of the recommendations of the Washington State Task Force on Social Equity in Cannabis.

As the 2022 Washington state legislative session began on Monday, 12 cannabis-related bills had been pre-filed for introduction and 7 would be reintroduced from 2021.