Washington State cannabis regulators are seeking nearly $12 million in the 2027-29 budget to move forward with a new marijuana traceability system, as the state works toward replacing the Cannabis Central Reporting System currently used by licensed businesses.
The request from the Washington State Liquor and Cannabis Board (LCB) also includes eight full-time equivalent positions connected to the project. Full-time equivalent positions are a staffing measure, meaning the funding would cover work equal to eight full-time jobs, though it does not necessarily mean exactly eight individual employees.
The request comes after an earlier attempt to obtain funding for the project was unsuccessful.
For the 2026 supplemental budget, LCB requested $3.972 million and 3.5 full-time equivalent positions for its Cannabis Traceability Project. State records show that request was not funded.
The agency has continued preparing for a replacement system, however, with planning documents specifically identifying the 2027-29 biennium as the anticipated period for the larger project.
LCB currently uses the Cannabis Central Reporting System (CCRS), an internally developed reporting platform that replaced Leaf Data Systems. The agency has described CCRS as a simplified system created as Washington moved away from its previous third-party platform.
State documents have also characterized CCRS as a stop-gap solution while officials determine what a longer-term traceability system should look like.
The proposed replacement could provide substantially more robust tracking. In a response to a rulemaking petition, LCB noted that a traceability system could provide real-time updates when marijuana is moved or sold, compared with the minimum weekly reporting used under CCRS.
LCB has spent several years gathering information for the project.
A cannabis industry survey conducted as part of that work asked producers, processors, retailers and other industry participants about their experiences with CCRS and what they would want from a future system. The agency said the feedback would help inform requirements for a replacement.
Planning documents also call for an independent feasibility study examining the technical, economic, legal, operational and scheduling aspects of a new system.
The potential cost has been a significant question throughout the process. LCB said a 2023 request for information produced estimates ranging from a few million dollars to as much as $50 million for a cannabis traceability system.
Washington has changed marijuana tracking systems multiple times since recreational sales began. The state initially used BioTrack THC before moving to Leaf Data Systems in 2017. Problems with that platform eventually led LCB to develop CCRS, which took over reporting functions in 2021.
The nearly $12 million request is part of the state’s 2027-29 budget process and does not itself authorize spending. Agency requests are reviewed as the governor develops a proposed budget, with final appropriations requiring legislative approval.
