Washington Considers Overhauling Current Cannabis Regulations

[dropcap class=”kp-dropcap”]W[/dropcap]ashington State was one of the first states to fully legalize recreational cannabis, and now, five years later, state officials are thinking about making some serious changes to their current system.

According to the Lewiston Tribune, this new plan would boost minority ownership, prepare for home delivery and help small grows expand their presence and become competitive.

The Washington State Liquor and Cannabis Board (LCB) is calling the new proposal “Cannabis 2.0,” which is a total overhaul of the state’s current cannabis program. Officials will be trying to predict the current and future challenges of the legal cannabis market over the next five years. “We’ve typically been so challenged with the issues of the day, we haven’t been looking out long-term to determine what the future looks like,” LCB Director Rick Garza said.

The LCB is also considering partnering with other agencies to better help regulate cannabis. For instance, the Department of Ecology could oversee cannabis testing and the Department of Financial Institutions manage look at cannabis businesses and licenses.

Under this proposal, business owners who are minorities or military veterans would be eligible to apply for new licenses, in order to embrace more diversity in the industry. It would also allow for small businesses to expand, something many feel will help improve fair competition.

Washington has recently been on a mission to make cannabis more inclusive. A local university is pairing up with a Native American tribe to study cannabis and the governor recently signed a bill to pardon past cannabis convictions. These new rules could be a major next step for legal cannabis in Washington State.