WALeg Day 50: Senate says no to pot drive-thru, vending machines

OLYMPIA — Selling marijuana in vending machines and at drive-through stands would be outlawed under a bill that received unanimous support in the Senate Monday afternoon.

But the examples the bill’s sponsor used tp support the bill are currently illegal under rules all state-licensed marijuana stores must follow.

Sen. Barbara Bailey, R-Oak Harbor, asked her colleagues to imagine a future where their teens could go to a sporting event and purchase a marijuana-laced cookie out of a vending machine, or order their usual latte from a drive-through coffee stand and get a drink laced with marijuana.

With no debate and little further comment, the Senate then unanimously passed SB 5903 .

Neither of the scenarios Bailey envisioned could happen under rules for state-licensed sales of recreational marijuana established by the state Liquor Control Board. Recreational marijuana can only be sold in a licensed store, and only to people 21 and older. Even if the store has a vending machine for marijuana products — they exist, but they’re rare — an employee must check the buyer’s identification to determine legal age before the purchase is allowed.

State law also limits the items a recreational marijuana store can sell, and does not permit it to sell other food or drinks, so a drive-through coffee stand couldn’t add marijuana-infused drinks to its menu.