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

Testimony on a craft cannabis endorsement was weighted in favor of those who saw the proposal increasing fairness in the cannabis market, but others were not so sure.

Washington State House and Senate policy committees had full schedules for the second week of the short session as 21 cannabis-related bills vied for legislator attention - including four newly introduced.

Some licensees, WSLCB staff, and prevention advocates encouraged lawmakers to pass request legislation on cannabinoid regulation, while other licensees preferred a competing bill.

A majority of speakers favored legislation to create a cannabis commodity commission, but questions remained about costs, goals, and the inclusiveness with which the bill was drafted.

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.

The chair of the cannabis science task force explained the work of the group, including its remaining report, and fielded a question about in-matrix proficiency tests.

University of Washington researchers spoke about recommending policies regarding high THC cannabis concentrates ahead of a legislatively mandated report on the subject.

Cannabis social equity task force staff described adopted recommendations and those still in progress before responding to questions about data and goals of the group.

The head of the Office of Health Professions talked about the medical cannabis program, addressed a study of patient tax exemptions, and discussed patient trends.

The lobbyist for WSLCB gave an update on staff engagement with lawmakers and progress on two draft bills with associated budget requests being prepared for the governor’s office.