The Washington Cannabusiness Association’s agenda for the 2023 legislative session is focused on money.
“Front and center is making sure that our businesses, Washington businesses, are positioned well to thrive in the future and that really centers around access to capital,” said Vicki Christophersen, executive director and lobbyist for WACA.
Washington state is one of two states that doesn’t allow cannabis businesses to access funding from other sources such as venture capital or angel investors, she said. She said she believes it’s time for the state to take a look at that issue, and figure out how to give licensees tools for other funding options.
This is the sixth year that WACA has supported measures to ease the restrictions on funding for cannabis businesses, according to the agency’s press release.
WACA also is hoping for legislation that would uphold limits for licensees, so that the market is not overwhelmed but still has enough product. Currently, Christophersen said there is too much product on the market.
The organization is looking at legislation similar to what was implemented in California and Oregon, which Christophersen referred to as a “trigger bill.” The legislation would allow the governor to enter a compact with other states for interstate commerce, so that in the event that federal regulations are changed while the Legislature is not in session, Washington cannabis businesses wouldn’t be locked out by the change.
“We’re looking at this through the lens of where have we been for the last 10 years and where do we need to go to make sure that our businesses, the pioneers that got into this business in the first place, are those that succeed going forward,” Christophersen said.
While WACA isn’t requesting an equity in cannabis bill for their own legislative agenda, Christophersen said the organization is expecting to see one requested by the Liquor and Cannabis Board. She said WACA anticipates supporting the bill, which would open up licensing for social equity applicants and said the organization will work with the Legislature to help move the bill forward.
Additionally, Christophersen said WACA is expecting to support legislation that would “take a strong stance” against unregulated cannabis products sold in convenience stores such as Delta 8 tetrahydrocannabinol, also known as delta-8 THC, a psychoactive substance found in the Cannabis sativa plant, but typically manufactured from hemp-derived cannabidiol (CBD).
When hemp was legalized, that created a loophole for Delta 8 products, Christophersen said. She said she believes that not only is it a public safety issue, but that it is also “unfair competition for the regulated industry.”
Christophersen also noted that the organization has been “hoping” that the Safe Banking Act would move forward in Congress but the bill failed to pass again last week. There is a possibility the legislation could be added to an omnibus package before the year is over, however.
Christophersen said legislators and cannabis businesses are “pushing hard for something to happen.” In April, several Seattle City Council members and Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell sent Congress a letter urging them to pass the legislation.
They noted that the inability for cannabis businesses to have secure banking options has created “an urgent and deadly public health crisis.”
Gov. Jay Inslee and Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson also called on Congress to act in an April op-ed published by McClatchy newspapers and said the SAFE Banking Act is a matter of life and death.
WACA is a democratically-run organization that represents multiple facets of the cannabis industry including retailers, producers, banks and transporters, according to the group’s website.
The 105-day legislative session will convene on Jan. 9.
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