Washington Gov. Jay Inslee (D) has signed legislation into law to exempt registered medical marijuana patients from the state’s 37 percent cannabis excise tax, which is currently one of the highest in the country. The exemption will only apply, however, to products that have been certified to higher testing standards than typical state-legal products.
HB 1453, which lawmakers sent to the governor earlier this month, would allow registered patients and caregivers to avoid the tax when purchasing products that are compliant with Department of Health (DOH) testing standards. Medical marijuana cardholders already are eligible for exemptions from sales and use taxes on cannabis, but they are not currently exempt from the state excise tax.
The tax exemption would apply only to products that are DOH-compliant, meaning the products have been tested more rigorously for safety. While manufacturers in the state are required to submit all medical and adult-use products to labs for testing, producers can voluntarily have additional testing done—to screen for heavy metals, for example—that isn’t otherwise required. Marijuana that passes the additional testing can be labeled with a DOH-developed logo.
“This bill will lead to a wider variety of DOH-compliant cannabis products on the market available to qualifying patients and designated providers, will improve program participation, and will help ease suffering,” a legislative staff summary of public testimony in support of the legislation says.
Provisions of the new law, sponsored by Rep. Sharon Wylie (D) and two other Democrats, are set to expire on June 30, 2029. A report by the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Committee on the tax impacts of the change would be due in 2028.
One of the bill’s co-sponsors, Rep. Shelley Kloba (D) also sponsored a cannabis homegrow bill this session—the latest in a series of such measures introduced over the past several years—but the proposal ultimately died in committee. If passed, HB 2194 would have allowed adults 21 and older to grow up to four plants per person, with no more than 10 allowed per household. Home cultivation of marijuana without a medical marijuana card remains a felony in the state.
Kloba told Marijuana Moment last month that she’s committed to continued advocacy for the policy change and plans to introduce yet another homegrow measure next year.
“I am committed to this issue, and plan to run a bill again next session,” she said. “Every session has its own character and constraints, which so far have meant that the bill has not advanced to the Senate. But I am not giving up.”
Washington voters legalized marijuana for adult use through a ballot measure in 2012.
H/T: marijuanamoment.net
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