Residents of Washington state flooded marijuana dispensaries early Tuesday morning, celebrating the fact that the state has begun legally selling recreational weed. 

After Colorado, Washington is now the second state in the country where adults can purchase marijuana legally without needing a medical reason. 

According to CBS News, officials gave licenses to 25 marijuana proprietors Monday, allowing recipients of the licenses to start selling pot the next day. Local media outlets showed that some eager customers lined up outside dispensaries early Tuesday to be the first people in Washington to buy legal marijuana. 

At 12 p.m. Tuesday, James Lanthrop, the owner of Cannabis City, said, "It's time to free the weed!"

He cut police tape at noon to signal the commencement of the legal sale of recreational marijuana in the state. 

Cannabis City is one of only four pot retail establishments that are open for business in the state. More than 300 licenses for selling legal weed are going to be issued in the near future. 

However, one issue is that medical marijuana dispensaries are unregulated, meaning less than one-tenth of approved Washington growers were ready to sell in time for legalization. On the other hand, Colorado was able to have a smooth transition from medical marijuana to recreational weed earlier in the year. 

High taxes and a scarcity of supplies pushed prices to double the amount of street value. Nevertheless, hundreds of Washingtonians lined up outside Seattle's retailers. 

While most hailed the legalization, some took umbrage that weed is now legal in the state. 

"We're going to see a lot of people entering the marketplace who maybe wouldn't have before," said Courtney Popp, a special deputy with the Washington State Patrol, according to CBS News. "Ever since the legalization passed, every park you go to, every large public event there are people openly smoking marijuana."

Deborah Geene, 65, who was the first customer at Cannabis City after waiting in line for almost 24 hours, believes that pot usage will diminish due to its increased presence. 

"It's in a form that we can at least start to manage, and maybe take some of the scariness away from other people who don't really know about it," she said.

While marijuana is still considered a Schedule 1 narcotic, residents in Washington and Colorado voted to strike down the prohibition on selling weed in the states on Nov. 12, allowing adults to purchase pot from state-regulated purveyors. Colorado began selling weed legally on Jan. 1. 

Almost half of the states in the U.S. allow medical marijuana to be sold legally.

Adults in Washington can purchase up to an ounce of dry marijuana, 16 ounces of infused solids and 72 ounces of infused liquids. Residents are also allowed to buy up to seven grams of concentrated marijuana. 

However, people are still prohibited from smoking in public, and retailers of weed cannot sell within 1,000 feet of a school. Customers can also only buy up to 28 grams of marijuana in a single purchase.