SEATTLE — Washington is delaying its timeline for granting marijuana growing and processing licenses — and that means legal marijuana sales likely won’t begin before spring of next year.Rather than issue growing licenses this summer and processor licenses this fall, as called for in a tentative prior timeline, the Liquor Control Board will issue all licenses Dec. 1, spokesman Brian Smith said Wednesday.
That means the growers likely won’t be able to get to work until December, and the final product won’t be ready for a couple of months after that, Smith said.
Washington joined Colorado last fall in becoming the first states to legalize recreational marijuana for adults over 21, and to allow the sale of taxed pot at state-licensed stores. Washington’s Liquor Control Board has been devising rules for the industry, covering topics such as how the plants will be grown, how marijuana products will be tested for strength and quality, and how many retail stores will be allowed.
Issuing all the licenses at once will help growers because they’ll have a better picture of the industry before they begin growing, Smith said.