Seattle-Tuesday, May 16, 2023: Today, City Attorney Davison with Councilmembers Nelson and Pedersen submitted updated legislation to prohibit drug possession and drug use in public places. The bill follows the Washington State Legislature’s passage of 2E2SSB 5536 in special session. The proposed legislation would bring Seattle into conformity with the State law. Conforming legislation is required in order for public drug use and drug possession to be charged by the Seattle City Attorney.
The proposed legislation can be found here: SCAO Controlled Substances Ordinance Proposal
“Seattle residents, local leaders and our elected officials have made it clear that enough is enough. The epidemic of drug use on our streets must be addressed. I’m gratified that the State has arrived at a bipartisan agreement and now it is time for Seattle to adopt those laws,” said City Attorney Ann Davison. “We need to use all the tools available to us at both a State and local level to move more people into treatment. Every day we delay, more lives are lost to substances.”
“The time for complacency on public drug use is over and we must use all the tools at our disposal to interrupt the cycle of addiction and help move people into recovery,” said Councilmember Sara Nelson. “Now that Olympia has appropriated resources for treatment and adopted a fix for Blake, we’re bringing our legislation into alignment to remove any further cause for inaction on the most critical public health and public safety issue of our time.”
Councilmember Alex Pedersen offered: “Thankfully, State government leaders confirmed it’s not okay for people to smoke fentanyl or to use other illegal drugs in our public spaces or on our public transit, and the laws on the books need to reflect those basic public health and safety standards. Last month, we proactively introduced a stopgap safety measure for Seattle, and now we’ve updated it to match the State’s strong actions this week, so there’s no longer any excuse for City Hall inaction. The time for excuses is over and the time for action is now.”
On April 27, Davison, Nelson, and Pedersen introduced a Seattle bill to prohibit public use of illegal drugs to fill the gap in the law when the State Legislature initially adjourned without a statewide fix. Their Seattle proposal was similar to proposals from other fast-acting jurisdictions across the state, which were also eager to take appropriate and responsible action to fill the legal gap. Governor Inslee called State legislators back for a special session to craft a state-level measure, which they adopted today, May 16. On May 11, several neighborhood and citywide business and civic groups sent a letter to the Seattle City Council stating, “We urge the City Council to address this public health emergency head on and with the urgency it demands.”