This is part of a series updating our readers on some of our top stories of the past year.

As a stopgap in the wake of the court decision, lawmakers and Inslee approved legislation that year that made unlawful possession of a drug a misdemeanor crime on the third violation, with officers supposed to present treatment options the first two times. Never intended as a permanent solution, that law sunsets in July 2023.

Now lawmakers and Inslee must decide how the state handles both possession and treatment for narcotics – and they have a firm deadline.

As they return to Olympia in early January, legislators now seek a longer-term solution