Spokane City Council defers kratom ban as state Legislature eyes regulation

The Spokane City Council is pumping the brakes on a possible ban on the sale of the psychoactive plant kratom and its extracts while the state Legislature considers bills that may regulate the drug.

Kratom is frequently sold at gas stations and smoke shops in both plant and extract form. Though kratom is not an opioid, it affects opioid receptors in the brain and can create a similar euphoric effect at high doses. Unlike opioids, kratom is not regulated by the state or federal government and is available over the counter.

Mayor Lisa Brown, who has argued in interviews that the drug is causing “substantial harm,” proposed the possible citywide ban, pointing to advertisements outside of high schools, warnings from local health officials and law enforcement and a recent string of fatal overdoses in Idaho jails.

“If this was being handled at the state level, we wouldn’t have to, but at this point it isn’t, and there is substantial harm that is being caused,” Brown said in a Jan. 9 interview.

Now, citing multiple efforts by state legislators to regulate the drug statewide, the City Council has deferred any action on a city ban for at least two months.

Two bills have been introduced in the Senate: SB 6196 and 6287.

SB 6287 would prohibit the sale of kratom products to anyone under 21 years old and establish product labeling standards, among other regulations. It would also leave room for local jurisdictions to establish stricter rules or bans.

SB 6196 would levy a 95% tax on kratom products. That revenue would be funneled into a Youth Harmful Substance Prevention fund. The bill would also require kratom distributors to be licensed by the state Liquor and Cannabis Board.

If state-level attempts to regulate founder, the City Council will revisit a local ban in two months. If the Legislature seems to be making progress by the end of March, the local ban would likely be deferred again to allow time for the state bills to be approved.