Skagit County Cannabis – Is It Legal & Where To Buy 2025

Is Cannabis Cultivation Legal in Skagit County?

Licensed cannabis cultivation for medical and adult use in Skagit County is legal. Medical cannabis was legalized in the State of Washington by Initiative 692 (I-692) in 1998, with amendments improving it in subsequent years. Recreational cannabis use by individuals aged 21 and older was legalized in 2012 by Initiative 502 (I-502). In 2015, medical and recreational cannabis laws were aligned by the passing of SB 5052 called the Cannabis Patient Protection Act, and HB 2136 called the Marijuana Taxation Reform.

The Revised Code of Washington (RCW) Chapter 69.51A and RCW 69.50 codify the regulations for medical and recreational cannabis. The Washington State Liquor and Cannabis Board (WSLCB) regulates and licenses both medical and recreational cannabis businesses. The Washington State Department of Health (DOH) handles medical cannabis authorizations, the database for registered patients and caregivers, and their registration.

To operate in Skagit County, a cannabis medical or recreational cultivation company must be granted a cannabis producer license by the WSLCB. The application period, however, ended on December 18, 2013.

According to Skagit County’s Permit Guidance for Recreational and Medical Marijuana, updated in 2015, Skagit County Ordinance O20150005 and Skagit County Code (SCC) 14.16.855 require that an application to the WSLCB for the cannabis producer license includes prior approval on land use and building permits granted by the Skagit County Planning and Development Services. However, no county business permit is required.

Licensed medical and adult-use cannabis cultivation must be done indoors, excluding greenhouses, and out of sight of the public. No odors must escape from the cultivation facility.

Licensed medical and adult-use cannabis cultivation facilities are only allowed in the following zones in Skagit County:

• Bayview Ridge Light Industrial
• Bayview Ridge Heavy Industrial
• Urban Reserve Commercial-Industrial
• Agricultural—Natural Resource Lands (provided cultivation is done within a building that already existed on January 1, 2014)

All types of medical and adult-use cannabis facilities, including cultivation facilities, must comply with the following WSLCB rules:

1. A licensed medical and adult-use cannabis facility must be located at a distance of over 1,000 feet from any school up to the secondary level, library, childcare facility, playground, public park, recreational facility, arcade open to minors, and public transportation facility.
2. A licensed medical and adult-use cannabis facility must be protected by a system of alarms and surveillance video cameras.
3. A licensed medical and adult-use cannabis facility must not allow entry to persons younger than 21.
4. A licensed medical and adult-use cannabis facility must display signs warning that the consumption of cannabis on the premises is prohibited.
5. A licensed medical and adult-use cannabis facility must comply with the packaging and advertising regulations of the WSLCB.
6. A licensed medical and adult-use cannabis facility must abide by the operating hours set by the WSLCB.

Medical cannabis home cultivation of up to four cannabis plants is allowed in all zones of Skagit County for holders of a Washington State medical marijuana authorization form. Up to 15 medical cannabis plants may be grown by each medical cannabis cardholder with a healthcare practitioner’s recommendation. This is also the maximum allowed per household with several medical cannabis cardholders. Each medical cannabis card will indicate the specific number of medical cannabis plants the holder is allowed to cultivate.

Skagit County requires home cultivation of medical cannabis to be done only indoors, excluding greenhouses, and hidden from the view of the public or another residence. The growing area must also not emit any detectable odors.

While RCW 69.51A.250 allows authorized medical cannabis cardholders aged 21 and older to form a medical cannabis cultivation cooperative that must be registered with the WSLCB, Skagit County’s SCC 14.16.855 prohibits this.

Is Cannabis Manufacturing Legal in Skagit County?

Licensed medical and recreational cannabis product manufacturing in Skagit County is legal in accordance with the State of Washington’s current Cannabis Patient Protection Act and Marijuana Taxation Reform, as well as the county’s SCC 14.16.855.

To operate in Skagit County, a cannabis medical or recreational product manufacturing company must be granted a WSLCB cannabis processor license. The application for the WSLCB cannabis processor license for Skagit County also entails prior land use approval and building permits from the Skagit County Planning and Development Services. A county business permit and a local health review are not needed. Like the cannabis producer license, however, WSLCB applications for the cannabis processor license were closed as of July 2023.

Licensed medical and adult-use cannabis manufacturing facilities in the county are only allowed in the same zones as licensed cultivation facilities. Manufacturing must be done indoors, out of the public’s sight, and with no odors emitted outside the facility. All WSLCB requirements with regard to all types of medical and recreational cannabis facilities, as previously discussed, must be complied with.

Skagit County’s SCC 14.16.855 allows the use of carbon dioxide-based cannabis product processing in all permitted zoning districts. Only licensed manufacturing facilities located in the Bayview Ridge Heavy Industrial Zone are allowed to use flammable or hazardous gases or solvents in cannabis processing, provided that these are labeled by the manufacturer as intended for such use. Also, they must use these in an extraction system that is of professional grade, is closed-loop, and is able to harvest the chemicals applied.

Is Cannabis Retail Legal in Skagit County?

Licensed medical and recreational cannabis retail in Skagit County is legal under the Cannabis Patient Protection Act and Marijuana Taxation Reform of the State of Washington, and SCC 14.16.855 of the county.

The cannabis retailer license of the WSLCB is required for a recreational cannabis retailer to sell recreational cannabis and recreational cannabis products to persons aged 21 and older in Skagit County. To sell medical cannabis and medical cannabis products to medical marijuana authorization form holders and medical cannabis cardholders, the WSLCB medical cannabis endorsement is required. However, as of July 2023, applications for both licenses were closed.

The application for the WSLCB cannabis retailer license and medical cannabis endorsement to operate in Skagit County also requires land use approval and building permits from the Skagit County Planning and Development Services. No county business permit is necessary.

The licensed retailer must comply with all WSLCB regulations for all types of medical and recreational cannabis facilities, as mentioned earlier. Licensed medical and adult-use cannabis retail facilities in Skagit County are only allowed in the following zones:

• Rural Center
• Rural Freeway Service
• Rural Village Commercial
• Urban Reserve Commercial-Industrial

RCW 69.50.357, RCW 69.50.101, and RCW 69.51A.010 allow licensed medical and recreational cannabis retailers to sell medical and recreational cannabis flowers, cannabis concentrates, cannabis products including edibles, and cannabis paraphernalia to qualified purchasers. Medical and recreational cannabis products are required to have a maximum tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) content of 10%. These may consist of various types of cannabis-infused products.

Persons presenting their valid ID proving that they are aged 21 and older, as well as medical marijuana authorization form holders, may purchase any combination of the following as their purchase limits at licensed cannabis retailers:

• One ounce of dried cannabis flowers
• Seven grams of cannabis concentrate
• 16 ounces of a solid cannabis product
• 72 ounces of a liquid cannabis product

Medical cannabis cardholders, on the other hand, are allowed to purchase any combination of the following:

• Three ounces of dried cannabis flowers
• 21 grams of cannabis concentrate
• 48 ounces of a solid cannabis product
• 267 ounces of a liquid cannabis product

Is Cannabis Delivery Legal in Skagit County?

The Cannabis Patient Protection Act, Marijuana Taxation Reform, RCW 69.51A, and RCW 69.50 do not authorize licensed medical cannabis retailers to deliver medical cannabis and its products to medical marijuana authorization form holders and medical cannabis cardholders in the State of Washington. Likewise, these laws do not authorize licensed recreational cannabis retailers to deliver recreational cannabis and its products to persons aged 21 and older in the state.

RCW 69.50.382, however, authorizes the delivery of medical and recreational cannabis and cannabis products from one licensed cannabis business to another.

How to Get a Medical Marijuana Card in Skagit County

Skagit County residents can get a medical cannabis card after registering in the State of Washington’s Medical Cannabis Authorization Database. A medical marijuana authorization form must first be issued by a healthcare practitioner after the patient is diagnosed with any of the following ailments:

• Crohn's disease with debilitating symptoms
• Multiple sclerosis
• Hepatitis C with debilitating nausea or intractable pain
• Cancer
• Intractable pain
• HIV
• Traumatic brain injury
• Post-traumatic stress disorder
• Glaucoma
• Chronic renal failure needing hemodialysis
• Spasticity or seizure disorders
• Any illness causing vomiting, spasticity, nausea, seizures, appetite loss, spasms, wasting, or cramping

The medical marijuana authorization form must be brought by the patient to a medically endorsed retail cannabis facility. There were nine in Skagit County as of July 2023. The retailer’s medical cannabis consultant will take a photo of the patient and enter the patient’s information in the database. Afterward, a medical cannabis card will be printed out and the patient will be charged a dollar for it.

If the patient is below 18 or is an adult who needs assistance, a designated provider may be named in the medical marijuana authorization form. For minors, the designated provider must be a parent or legal guardian. The health care provider will provide the designated provider with a separate copy of the medical marijuana authorization form. The designated provider must then go through the same process as a patient in getting the medical cannabis card.

Queries may be made through:

Email: MedicalMarijuana@doh.wa.gov

Phone: 360-236-4819

How Has Cannabis Legalization Impacted the Economy of Skagit County?

Medical and recreational cannabis and cannabis products in the State of Washington are subject to the 37% cannabis excise tax. Medical and recreational cannabis and cannabis products are also subject to the retail sales tax, with the following exemptions:

• All purchases of medical cannabis cardholders
• Donations to medical cannabis cardholders of cannabis products containing THC levels of 0.3% or lower
• Donations or sales made by health care practitioners to qualified patients of non-digestible topical cannabis products containing THC levels of 0.3% or lower
• Purchases of cannabis products containing high cannabidiol (CBD) percentages by age-qualified consumers, except forms meant to be smoked
• Member acquisition of cannabis and cannabis products from their cooperative’s output

High-CBD cannabis products are any of the following:

• Cannabis concentrates with a maximum THC content of 2% and a minimum CBD content that is 25 times higher, based on weight
• Edible cannabis products with a maximum THC content of 2% and a minimum CBD content that is five times higher, based on weight for solid forms and based on volume for liquid forms
• Topical cannabis products with a CBD content that is five times higher than their THC content

All recreational cannabis and cannabis product sales are subject to the business and occupation tax.

According to the WSLCB’s FY 2022 Annual Report, the state earned in that year $515.2 million from cannabis, of which $511.10 million were from cannabis taxes and $4.10 million were from cannabis license fees. From that fund, $20 million was distributed to local governments, such as Skagit County.

The Effects of Cannabis Legalization on Crime Rates in Skagit County

Medical cannabis was legalized in Skagit County in 1998, and recreational cannabis was legalized in 2012.

Data sent by the Skagit County Sheriff's Office to the Crime Explorer page of the FBI shows that in 1997, a year before the legalization of medical cannabis, there were 53 marijuana possession arrests and one marijuana sales arrest, totaling 54 marijuana offense arrests.

In 1999, a year after the legalization of medical cannabis, there were 36 marijuana possession arrests, comprising all marijuana offense arrests.

In 2013, a year after the legalization of adult-use cannabis, there were eight marijuana possession arrests, comprising all marijuana offense arrests..

In 2021, the latest data showed no marijuana offense arrests.

In those years, the number of DUI arrests was as follows:

• 1997: 115 arrests
• 1999: 151 arrests
• 2013: 122 arrests
• 2021: 60 arrests