LYNNWOOD—Lynnwood City Councilmembers continued its ongoing discussion on whether, or not, they will be allowing retail cannabis stores to operate within city limits during its Work Session, Monday, June 16, where councilmembers heard from Representative Lauren Davis (LD-32) and community health advocates on the potential health risks of cannabis, specifically high potency THC, or tetrahydrocannabinol.
Rep. Lauren Davis (LD-32), who considers herself an “evidence-based” politician, first spoke, raising important health concerns—both physical and mental.
“When voters went to the booths in 2012, they thought they were legalizing cannabis – the plant that grows in the ground, but Washington actually didn’t legalize cannabis we commercialized THC,” said Rep. Davis. “We legalized business investment, we legalized scientists to breed the most potent varieties, we legalized extraction.”
Davis first made the point that when cannabis was first legalized in Washington state in 2012, black market potency was around 7-10%; Now products sold in retailers can be up to 99% potency which drives addictive tendencies, carries severe health concerns, and plays a role in mental wellness as well.
“If you’re a for-profit business you have two options; you can grow your customer base, or you can have your existing customers buy more of your product. If you’re an addiction-for-profit company you do that by making your product more addictive, and the way that you make cannabis more addictive is you make it more potent,” said Davis.
The health data used to consider legalizing cannabis in 2012 was much different than the health impacts of more potent cannabis today, Davis continued. She presented the council with updated data divided into three categories: physical health, mental health, and addictive health.
Cannabis is antiemetic meaning it suppresses vomiting and nausea – one of the FDA-approved medical uses for it (for example, cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy). High potency cannabis, on the other hand, is the opposite of that; it induces vomiting and nausea. There is a new diagnosis called cannabinoid hyperemesis syndrome (CHS) which is a cannabis-caused cyclical vomiting disorder that can be fatal. A man in his 20’s from Mount Vernon died recently, Davis said, due to a dehydration-induced seizure caused by CHS.
In low potency cannabis, there have been little-to-no rates of addiction, whereas in high-potency products, there are quite a few cases of cannabis addiction, according to Davis.
As for mental health impacts, high-potency cannabis products have been known to cause suicidal thoughts, trouble sleeping, anxiety, but most concernedly psychosis.
“Everyone has a threshold in their brain of which we can develop psychosis. High-potency cannabis lowers the threshold in which you can develop it,” said Davis.
For one third of individuals who present to an emergency department cannabis-induced psychosis, a third of them will have a diagnosis of schizophrenia within three years and half will have a diagnosis of schizophrenia within eight years, Davis said adding that there is no cure for schizophrenia and people who are diagnosed tend to die 25-years younger.
Studies have shown that in cases of young men suffering from schizophrenia, aged 21 to 30, a third of them would never have developed schizophrenia if it weren’t for the availability of high-potency THC.
Also, when comparing data of cannabis usage from 25 years ago until today, there is a 70-fold increase. So not only is the product much more potent, but people are also using it a lot more. There are now more daily users of cannabis than there are daily alcohol users. Approximately 98% of retail cannabis sales are to people who either have a substance use disorder or use cannabis heavily (more than 10x per month), according to Davis.
Davis also refuted the argument by cannabis proponents that if Lynnwood were not to allow retail cannabis stores within its city limits, consumers would drive out of the city to buy cannabis, anyway; stating that statistics show cannabis users living more than a 10-19 drive from the nearest cannabis store were less likely to develop problematic cannabis use disorder.
Density also matters, Davis continued, adding that a study conducted in Northern California found that residents living in a city where retail cannabis was not allowed were much less likely to develop psychotic disorder, and those living in jurisdictions where retail cannabis was allowed had significantly more cases of anxiety disorder, psychotic disorder, and depressive disorder.
Brittany Bevis-Sciuto, Healthy Communities Specialist, refuted another argument that “cannabis is natural,” stating that “there is nothing natural about a concentrate that is 60-90% THC.”
“These products are the results of intentional engineering and breeding of high-potency strains,” said Bevis-Sciuto. “What occurs naturally is flower that’s at 19-15% or lower.”
Another common argument in favor of opening recreational marijuana stores in Lynnwood is the tax revenue it would generate for the city. At last April’s meeting the Planning Commission presented findings from the Washington State Liquor and Cannabis Board reporting that neighboring jurisdictions with the same number of allotted licenses – Edmonds and Mountlake Terrace – experienced tax revenues in the $100’s of thousands since allowing retail cannabis within their cities.
However, a vast majority of that money does not stay in the city or local jurisdiction our initial investigation is uncovering.
Most of the revenue from retail cannabis sales does not remain in the city or local jurisdiction. Washington State’s 37% cannabis excise tax is directed to the state’s Dedicated Cannabis Account, which is then used to fund various state services. Local governments may receive a small portion of the remaining funds, with 1.5% allocated to counties, cities, and towns hosting licensed cannabis retailers, and up to an additional 3.5% distributed to these areas based on population.
Lynnwood would, however, keep the portion of the local sales tax from retail cannabis sales. Currently, Lynnwood has a 10.6% retail sales tax—broken down to 4.1% local and 6.5% state.
The Council is planning to meet with the Planning Commission come July 24 to discuss the approval/drafting of an ordinance.
As of today, there are no recreational cannabis stores within Lynnwood city limits, despite four licenses (or title-certificates) allocated to the city by the state. All four of these licenses, which are issued by the Washington State Liquor and Cannabis Board, are accounted for by individuals who must wait for the city’s approval before they are reinstated as retail licenses. Additional licenses could be awarded to the city in the future if it raises the allowable retailers.
Washington State voters approved I-502 in 2012, which legalized the production, processing, and retail sales of cannabis.
In response, the City of Lynnwood enacted a series of moratoriums prohibiting the sale of retail cannabis within city limits beginning in June 2013, through February 2015.
A City ordinance, 3136, adopted June of 2015, revoked these moratoriums and implemented a final prohibition of retail sales, production and processing, and medical marijuana collective gardens.
The Lynnwood City Council heard from Planning Commission staff regarding allowing retail cannabis sales within the city limits, at a Work Session Monday, April 21.
The Commission’s’ recommendations to council were to pass an ordinance that would allow retail cannabis in the following zones: Highway 99 Mixed Use (HMU), General Commercial, and Alderwood subject to the following conditions:
- Provide a minimum 1,000-foot buffer on Highway 99 Mixed Use and General Commercial zones for restricted entities which are allowed to reduce buffer.
- Provide a minimum 300-foot buffer in Alderwood zone for restricted entities which are allowed to reduce buffer
- And require landscaping, parking, and other standards required for retail use in the underlying zones.
The Planning Commission also recommended that Council reevaluate the City Center zone for retail cannabis after the construction of Town Square Park.
State law, both RCW’s 69.50 and 314-55 WAC, regulates where retail cannabis stores can be located, how they are advertised, enforced, and licensed. For example, state law prohibits retail cannabis stores within 1,000 feet of elementary or secondary schools, childcare centers, public parks, recreation centers, and game arcades not limited to 21+ crowds.
Editor’s Note: [8:21 p.m., June 18, 2025] The article was updated to correctly reflect Rep. Davis’ comment which originally read that “98% of cannabis users have substance use disorder.” The corrected comment now reads, “Approximately 98% of retail cannabis sales are to people who either have a substance use disorder or use cannabis heavily (more than 10x per month).”
Author: Kienan Briscoe
4 Responses
Prohibition and Reefer Madness are only pushed and believed by a very small, lunatic-fringe minority of irrational looney-tune Holier Than Thou types that are on a never ending little personal moral-crusade and witch-hunt against relatively benign cannabis and it’s consumers. The rest of us sane, rational, normal Americans just laugh our butts off at and mock utterly desperate lying prohibitionists and their ridiculous Reefer-Madness-Rhetoric as the comedy show they truly are!
Cannabis should be absolutely just as legal and easy to obtain anywhere as alcohol currently is. No exceptions. It’s so easy: As legal and easy to obtain/use as alcohol currently is. Why hold relatively benign, often healing cannabis to any sort of irrational, stricter double standard than perfectly legal alcohol?
Fear of Cannabis Legalization Nationwide is unfounded. Not based on any science or fact whatsoever. So please prohibitionists, we beg you to give your scare tactics, “Conspiracy Theories” and “Doomsday Scenarios” over the inevitable Legalization of Cannabis Nationwide a rest. Nobody is buying them anymore these days. Okay?
Furthermore, if all prohibitionists get when they look into that nice, big and shiny crystal ball of theirs, while wondering about the future of cannabis legalization, is horror, doom, and despair, well then I suggest they return that thing as quickly as possible and reclaim the money they shelled out for it, since it’s obviously defective.
The prohibition of cannabis has not decreased the supply nor the demand for cannabis at all. Not one single iota, and it never will. Just a huge and complete waste of our tax dollars to continue criminalizing citizens for choosing a natural, non-toxic, relatively benign plant proven to be much safer than alcohol.
If prohibitionists are going to take it upon themselves to worry about “saving us all” from ourselves, then they need to start with the drug that causes more death and destruction than every other drug in the world COMBINED, which is alcohol!
Why do prohibitionists feel the continued need to vilify and demonize cannabis when they could more wisely focus their efforts on a real, proven killer, alcohol, which again causes more destruction, violence, and death than all other drugs, COMBINED?
Prohibitionists really should get their priorities straight and/or practice a little live and let live. They’ll live longer, happier, and healthier, with a lot less stress if they refrain from being bent on trying to control others through Draconian Cannabis Laws.
There is absolutely no doubt now that the majority of Americans want to completely legalize cannabis nationwide. Our numbers grow on a daily basis.
The prohibitionist view on cannabis is the viewpoint of a minority and rapidly shrinking percentage of Americans. It is based upon decades of lies and propaganda.
Each and every tired old lie they have propagated has been thoroughly proven false by both science and society.
Their tired old rhetoric no longer holds any validity. The vast majority of Americans have seen through the sham of cannabis prohibition in this day and age. The number of prohibitionists left shrinks on a daily basis.
With their credibility shattered, and their not so hidden agendas visible to a much wiser public, what’s left for a cannabis prohibitionist to do?
Maybe, just come to terms with the fact that Cannabis Legalization Nationwide is an inevitable reality that’s approaching much sooner than prohibitionists think, and there is nothing they can do to stop it!
Legalize Nationwide!…and Support All Cannabis Legalization Efforts!
“Cannabis is 114 times safer than drinking alcohol”
“Cannabis may be even safer than previously thought, researchers say”
“Cannabis may be even safer than previously thought, researchers say New study: We should stop fighting Cannabis legalization and focus on alcohol and tobacco instead By Christopher Ingraham February 23
Compared with other recreational drugs — including alcohol — Cannabis may be even safer than previously thought. And researchers may be systematically underestimating risks associated with alcohol use.
Those are the top-line findings of recent research published in the journal Scientific Reports, a subsidiary of Nature. Researchers sought to quantify the risk of death associated with the use of a variety of commonly used substances. They found that at the level of individual use, alcohol was the deadliest substance, followed by heroin and cocaine.”
-Washington Post
“The report discovered that Cannabis is 114 times less deadly than alcohol. Researchers were able to determine this by comparing the lethal doses with the amount of typical use. Through this approach, Cannabis had the lowest mortality risk to users out of all the drugs they studied. In fact—because the numbers were crossed with typical daily use—Cannabis is the only drug that tested as “low risk.”
-Complex
Legalize federally now. What’s legal to possess and consume in over half of the populated areas of The United States should not make you a criminal in states still being governed by woefully ignorant prohibitionist politicians. Cannabis consumers in all states deserve and demand equal rights and protections under our laws that are currently afforded to the drinkers of far more dangerous and deadly, yet perfectly legal, widely accepted, endlessly advertised and even glorified as an All-American pastime, alcohol. Plain and simple! Legalize Nationwide Federally Now!
What we certainly don’t need are anymore people who feel justified in appointing themselves to be self-deputized morality police.
We are very capable of choosing for ourselves if we want to consume cannabis, a far less dangerous choice over alcohol, and we definitely don’t need anyone dictating how we should live our own lives.
We can’t just lock up everyone who does things prohibitionists don’t personally approve of.
It’s time for us, the majority of The People to take back control of our national cannabis policy. By voting OUT of office any and all politicians who very publicly and vocally admit to having an anti-cannabis, prohibitionist agenda! Time to vote’em all OUT of office. Period. Plain and simple.
Politicians who continue to demonize Cannabis, Corrupt Law Enforcement Officials who prefer to ruin peoples lives over Cannabis possession rather than solve real crimes who fund their departments toys and salaries with monies acquired through cannabis home raids, seizures and forfeitures, and so-called “Addiction Specialists” who make their income off of the judicial misfortunes of our citizens who choose cannabis, – Your actions go against The Will of The People and Your Days In Office Are Numbered! Find new careers before you don’t have one.
The People have spoken! Get on-board with Cannabis Legalization Nationwide, or be left behind and find new careers. Your choice.
The “War on Cannabis” has been a complete and utter failure. It is the largest component of the broader yet equally unsuccessful “War on Drugs” that has cost our country over two trillion dollars.
Instead of The United States wasting Billions upon Billions more of our yearly tax dollars fighting a never ending “War on Cannabis”, lets generate Billions of dollars, and improve the deficit instead. Especially now, due to Covid-19. It’s a no brainer.
The Prohibition of Cannabis has also ruined the lives of many of our loved ones. In numbers greater than any other nation, our loved ones are being sent to jail and are being given permanent criminal records. Especially, if they happen to be of the “wrong” skin color or they happen to be from the “wrong” neighborhood. Which ruin their chances of employment for the rest of their lives, and for what reason?
Cannabis is much safer to consume than alcohol. Yet do we lock people up for choosing to drink?
Let’s end this hypocrisy now!
The government should never attempt to legislate morality by creating victim-less cannabis “crimes” because it simply does not work and costs the taxpayers a fortune.
Cannabis Legalization Nationwide is an inevitable reality that’s approaching much sooner than prohibitionists think and there is nothing they can do to stop it!
Legalize Nationwide Federally Now! Support Each and Every Cannabis Legalization Initiative!
“Consider the lasting health effects of bannabis, but feel free buy alcohol at literally any grocery store!” This is nimby boomer nonsense.