Craft Cannabis Coalition
(CCC)

Legislators greeted the final week of the 2023 regular session as WSLCB staff cleaned up a policy mess nearly made near the sleeping giant of environmental pesticide contamination.

Hemp industry members opposed a bill on THC regulation, but an agency representative as well as several cannabis industry, public health, and substance prevention groups backed the move.

As fiscal committees focused on legislation from the opposite chamber, representatives considered the social equity bill on Thursday and planned to review the revised THC bill Friday.

Legislators asked for additional information during testimony on a bill to expand the social equity program before an unscheduled WSLCB panel joined the hearing to field questions.

Committee members heard testimony in favor, opposed, and ‘other’ while seeking suggestions on THC levels for hemp products after the Senate decided any amount of THC was too much. 

Within its fiscal committee, testimony on a cannabinoid regulation bill championed by WSLCB was divided, there were THC threshold concerns, but also claims the bill helped cannabis tax revenue.

A public hearing on cannabinoid legislation had a mix of support from public officials and prevention groups, as well as opposition/other remarks from hemp and cannabis interests.

A bill creating cannabis tax tiering received supportive testimony and many neutral suggestions from industry representatives welcoming a new conversation on product taxation.

A bill adding restrictions on manufacturing and sales of hemp cannabinoid products was generally well received, but many speakers disagreed with the allowable THC limits.

Senators heard supportive testimony on a bill addressing retail theft and four new bills were prepared for introduction, including two targeting concentrated cannabis products.