Washington State House Commerce and Gaming Committee
(WA House COG)

The chair of the WA House cannabis policy committee commented on her background as well as legislative concerns and strategies she expected to hear during the 2023 session.

At four tables with small groups of lawmakers, WACA members and meeting attendees honed arguments in support of lower taxes, more advertising, vertical integration, and out of state ownership.

After the failure of several minority caucus amendments on the social equity bill, some members raised doubts about increasing cannabis licensure leading to narrow passage out of committee.

A definition of ‘impairing’ was added to legislation on cannabinoid regulation along with legislative oversight of WSLCB rulemaking before members recommended the bill be advanced.

A hearing on social equity legislation provoked largely favorable testimony, peppered with repeated questions and comments about proposed buffer zones changes for retailers.

Policy committees rushed to recommend legislation ahead of the initial cutoff deadline on February 3rd, including bills on retail safety, cannabinoid regulation, and social equity.

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

Prevention interests spoke favorably of a bill to form a “behavioral health prevention and equity impact framework” at WSLCB, but the appearance of unbalanced representation raised concerns.

24 cannabis-related bills were active and 11 were scheduled for committee activity in the week ahead, including social equity, craft endorsements, and WSLCB request legislation.

Agency staff described six proposals they were engaged with in the second week of the legislative session, leading to a longer discussion about dueling synthesized cannabinoid bills.