On November 6, 2012, the state of Washington began a government-backed program of civil disobedience against federal drug law by legalizing the recreational use of marijuana in the state. This began with the passage of voter initiative 502, which you can read more about here:
Washington Initiative 502
What's most striking to me about I-502 is how broad the base of support for the initiative was. Sponsors included US attorneys, city attorneys, state representatives, health officials, and two past presidents of the Washington State Bar Association. I-502 was a voter initiative, not a piece of legislative action, but clearly it had much support in the mainstream political arena. I suspect republicans and democrats voted for it in large numbers, whether out of a philosophical defense of liberty or a pragmatic desire to devote law enforcement resources to more meaningful things.
Whatever the rationale, no one who works for the state of Washington will get in the way of a (private) 4/20 celebration, though its still on the books as a violation of the federal controlled substances act. Presumably the feds have better things to do than rustling anyone's jimmies on this issue. That's what Olympia is counting on, anyway.
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