New Bills Would Limit Dab Sales to 25+ or Propose New Taxes

Written By Ramsey Doudar

The latest iterations of Rep. Lauren Davis’ “high THC” bill would make it so adults 21-24 would no longer be able to purchase concentrates [above 35% THC] unless they are a registered Medical Cannabis Patient.

The same 21-24 year olds would still be able to engage in potentially fatal activities like purchasing liquor, purchasing firearms, and joining the military. Under this bill, an 18 year old could risk their life for their country, but be unable to purchase cannabis concentrates for their PTSD when they return home, even if they were a registered patient because ‘invisible illnesses’ like PTSD are not considered qualifying conditions for medical cannabis in Washington state.

Over the years we’ve watched this bill change, as it originally intended to eliminate sales of all concentrates testing above 10% THC (lol), then they wanted to limit the potency of all concentrates to 30% THC (HB 1463), and last year they wanted the consumers to pay a 65% tax on dabs (HB 1641). They were all positioned as being science based policies championed by researchers, academics, and public health experts, but for some reason they seemed apprehensive, if not disinterested, in the idea of using some of the state’s exorbitant amount of cannabis tax revenue to fund public education campaigns targeted to young people.


We’re Patients and Users for Reasonable policy, not Radical policy. Perhaps we’ll change that one day, but for now, we have to acknowledge and appreciate that though we do not support this bill, nor do we fully trust the sponsors’ intentions, they finally listened to the feedback we’ve given over the years. The majority of this bill deals with educational campaigns that are funded by cannabis tax revenue, which is a solution that we have always advocated for.


That being said, although University of Washington Addictions, Drug, & Alcohol Institute (ADAI) has presented some interesting research, we rarely (if ever) agree with the conclusions they arrive at, particularly their narrative about “cannabis psychosis.” Perhaps there is a fine line between “education” and propaganda, but PURP is by no means against science or research and does not want to be in the position of cherry picking which scientists we choose to support. To say that another way, we’re inclined to think the bill sponsors are full off shit and are just trying to get more funding for their own research and for the substance abuse industry, but we’re not academics ourselves and won’t get into the pissing match about poking holes in their propaganda/ research (whatever you wanna call it).


  1. HB 2320 - Concerning high THC cannabis products (they mean dabs)

    1. Would raise the purchase age for all cannabis concentrates testing above 35% THC to 25 years old

    2. Would limit sales of concentrates testing above 35% THC to registered patients

    3. Would allocate more resources to prevention and education campaigns targeted towards young adults and teens

  2. SB 6220 - Concerning high THC cannabis products (they mean dabs)

    1. Does the exact same shit as HB 2320

  3. SB 6271 - Modifying the cannabis excise tax to consider THC concentration

    1. Would commission a study about the feasibility of raising the tax rates (above the current 47% tax rate) for high potency cannabis products

    2. This bill would not raise taxes on its own, but lay the groundwork for a future tax increase

    3. This bill is supported by a major cannabis industry organization that we have previously called out for always putting business interests over consumer interests (specifically, they helped to lower pesticide and mold thresholds for cannabis products, by a lot, at the expense of the consumers who support their businesses)

How to Take Action

SB 6220 (raises the purchase age for dabs to 25)

  1. Go to https://app.leg.wa.gov/csi/Senate?selectedCommittee=28244&selectedMeeting=31749. Select "Regulated Substances & Gaming" from the Committee dropdown menu, then "01/22/2024 10:30am" from the Meetings dropdown menu.

    1. You have until 10:30am on Tuesday, January 23 2024 to register your position.

  2. Click on "SB 6220 High THC cannabis products," then click the link that says, I would like to submit written testimony."

  3. On the next page, make sure you select "CON" as your position. Complete the form with your information, and feel free to put "Patients and Users for Reasonable Policy" as your Organization.

SB 6271 (lays groundwork for raising taxes on dabs)

  1. Go to https://app.leg.wa.gov/csi/Senate?cId=28244&d=01/22/24%2010:30%20AM&aId=157443. Select "Regulated Substances & Gaming" from the Committee dropdown menu, then "01/22/2024 10:30am" from the Meetings dropdown menu.

    1. You have until 10:30am on Tuesday, January 23 2024 to register your position.

  2. Click on "SB 6271 Cannabis excise tax/THC," then click the link that says, I would like to submit written testimony."

  3. On the next page, make sure you select "CON" as your position. Complete the form with your information, and feel free to put "Patients and Users for Reasonable Policy" as your Organization.

HB 2320 (raises the purchase age for dabs to 25)

  1. Unfortunately this bill already had its public hearing last week, and we didn’t get the word out on time. But we did submit written testimony in opposition.

  2. If this bill advances out of committee, we’ll sound the alarm then provide instructions for contacting your House representatives about opposing this bill

Ramsey Doudar
Next

Action Needed: Stop the 65% Tax on Dabs