WA MMJ Safe for Now – HB 2149 and SB 5887 fail to pass

The Washington State legislative session ended on March 13th, 2014, passing neither HB 2149 or SB 5887.  That means that for now Washington’s medical cannabis laws will remain unaltered.  Medical cannabis activists are declaring this a victory for Washington’s medical patients as both bills would have significantly restricted patients’ rights, reducing the amount of medicine patients could possess, the number of plants they could grow, and introducing a patient registry.

In January of 2014 Sensible Washington, in conjunction with Americans for Safe Access, formulated an alternative bill, SB 2233, which “would result in no reduction in protections for patients, and would provide them with defined arrest protection, with no requirement of joining a registry. The current possession limit of 24 ounces, and the cultivation limit of 15 plants, would remain unaltered,” according to Sensible Washington.  Unfortunately, SB 2233 stalled in the House Health Care & Wellness Committee…