A third Washington state judge says cities and counties can ban licensed marijuana businesses within their jurisdictions.

The ruling Friday from Benton County Superior Court Judge Vic VanderSchoor was issued in the case of Americanna Weed, which had sued the city of Kennewick over its ban on pot businesses. A Chelan County judge upheld a ban in Wenatchee in October and a Pierce County judge upheld a ban in Fife in August, a ruling that has been appealed to the state Supreme Court.

Attorney General Bob Ferguson said in a news release that the decision affirms a legal opinion his office issued early this year.

Dozens of cities and counties around the state have temporarily or permanently banned marijuana businesses. Ferguson says nothing in Washington's legal pot law explicitly overruled local zoning authority.

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