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Washington lawmakers are in a race against the clock to keep their state from becoming the second in the nation to decriminalize possession of hard drugs.
Gov. Jay Inslee is calling lawmakers back for a special session Tuesday after the legislature failed to reach an agreement on a new drug law during the regular session.
A homeless man, 24, smokes fentanyl on March 12, 2022, in Seattle. Possession of hard drugs will become decriminalized on July 1 if lawmakers can’t pass a new law before then. (John Moore/Getty Images)
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“We’ve known since last year that we needed to pass legislation regarding this,” state Rep. Peter Abbarno, a Republican, told Fox News. “It’s pretty unfortunate to find that the can had been kicked so far down the road.”
The problem started in 2021 when the Washington Supreme Court struck down the state’s felony ban on drug possession as unconstitutional because it did not include an intent requirement. Lawmakers temporarily made drug possession a misdemeanor offense with the goal of coming up with a permanent solution.
But that hasn’t happened yet, and the misdemeanor law expires July 1.
Several bills addressing the issue were proposed, Abbarno said. Senate Bill 5536, which would have made possession a gross misdemeanor, came the closest to passing, but 15 Democrats joined all 40 Republicans in voting it down on the final day of the legislative session.
It “didn’t have teeth,” Abbarno said of the bill. House Republicans argued its jail diversion process was too lenient and would lead to a revolving door of offenses.
Abbarno said his ideal drug possession bill would strike a balance between “accountability and compassion.”
“When I look around my community, I don’t want to see somebody struggling with addiction, merely just thrown in jail. I want them to have the services they need,” he said.
But he also wants to ensure “people are held accountable” for…
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