University of Washington Addictions, Drug, and Alcohol Institute
(UW ADAI)

Companion “high THC” legislation was readied for the Senate, five additional bills were scheduled for committee actions, and two bills were poised for movement on Monday.

Co-sponsors flocked to new legislation, WSLCB leadership discussed two active bills, a new high-THC bill was readied, and committee schedules for the following week were published.

A rules update acknowledged more delays in some projects before public comments showed a divide on the fairness of social equity licensing and questioned cannabis research topics.

Legislators would hear about a study into “whether current levels of cannabis production align with market demand and capacity” before a WSLCB work group discussed cannabis education.

Some task force members sought input from WSLCB and DOH guests on how to proceed with hemp consumable legislation given that THC regulations were already undergoing revisions.

The operating budget that reached Governor Jay Inslee featured more than a dozen state agencies which received cannabis revenue, or were budgeted for activities related to the plant.

Researchers ran through various efforts to regulate cannabis concentrates which had been supported by some stakeholders before taking questions on how to influence legislators and the public.

An update on the 2023 legislative session hinted at a potential special session to revise a Blake bill on drug use and treatment, then staff discussed input on the medical cannabis system.

The final day of the 2023 regular session would almost certainly include acceptance of the operating budget - but passage of the Blake response bill seemed more complicated.

Three of four lingering cannabis bills were recommended through the upcoming cutoff gateway as initial revisions to biennium operating budgets consumed legislator attention.