Marijuana rules adopted by Washington State Liquor Control Board
Published 3:33 pm Tuesday, July 16, 2013
The Washington State Liquor Control Board recently approved rules aimed at keeping marijuana out of the hands of minors.
“Public safety is our top priority,” said Liquor Control Board Chairwoman Sharon Foster.
“These rules fulfill the public expectation of creating a tightly-regulated and controlled system while providing reasonable access to participation in the market.”
The foundation for the rule-making began soon after the November 2012 passage of Initiative 502.
The Liquor Control Board held eight public forums statewide that drew more than 3,000 attendees.
On May 16, the board publicly issued its initial draft seeking comment by June 10.
“While the overall response to our initial draft was quite positive, we received quality input from local governments, law enforcement, industry members, the prevention community and many others that we incorporated and further improved the rules,” Foster said.
Provisions include:
• All grows must meet strictly controlled on-site security requirements; strict surveillance and transportation requirements;
• robust traceability software system that will track inventory from start to sale;
• criminal background checks on all license applicants;
• tough penalty guidelines for public safety violations including loss of license, and;
• restrict certain advertising that may be targeted at children.
The following consumer safety elements were also included in the rules:
• Packaging and label requirements including dosage and warnings;
• child-resistant packaging for marijuana in solid and liquid forms;
• only lab tested and approved products will be available; defined serving sizes and package limits on marijuana in solid form, and;
• store signage requirements to educate customers.
