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LCB staff recommend — and board moves to deny — petition on ‘qualified remnants’ in social equity program
Summary
The Liquor and Cannabis Board heard a petition asking the agency to create a registry and priority allocation process for applicants the petitioner calls “qualified remnants.” The Director's Office recommended denying the petition; a motion to accept that recommendation was made and seconded during the meeting.
The Washington State Liquor and Cannabis Board heard a petition request that the agency create a registry and certificate to prioritize so-called “qualified remnants” — applicants who met statutory eligibility but were not selected by the social equity contractor — and route newly available social equity licenses to them before opening applications broadly.
Daniel Jacobs, Policy and Rules Coordinator in the Director’s Office, recommended the board deny the petition. Jacobs told the board the agency’s rules do not expressly prohibit the social equity contractor from retaining prior application materials for reuse and that issuing a formal registry and certificate would require IT infrastructure and funding that must be allocated by the legislature. Jacobs said, “Creating a registry of the kind described by the petitioner would require additional funding in IT infrastructure,” and added that shifting how licenses are allocated without opening the window to the public would be a policy change better handled by the legislature.
Jacobs also explained logistical concerns about so-called license recycling, including statutory priorities for forfeited or revoked licenses and the current procedures (registration windows, double-blind lotteries in ties, and rounds of notification to highest-scoring applicants) that govern allocation. He said questions remain about whether prior application scores would be reused or supplemented and noted that such changes could resemble opening a full new application window.
After Jacobs’ presentation the Chair asked for a motion; the transcript records a motion to “accept the Director’s recommendation and deny the rulemaking petition,” which was seconded and announced as carried. The meeting transcript does not record a roll-call vote or tally in the public record provided.
The petitioner named in the materials is Ash Shoden on behalf of Grown Folks 502 LLC. The Director’s Office said it would engage with any future legislative proponents if similar language appeared in a bill, but did not take a position on potential future legislation.
Next steps: the board recorded the motion and the meeting adjourned; the transcript does not indicate additional follow-up actions or a recorded vote tally from this session.
