Oregon activists close to placing medical marijuana dispensary initiative on the 2010 ballot
Last update: January 21, 2010
Voter Power, an Oregon nonprofit advocating for marijuana reform, has collected about 50% of the signatures necessary to place a dispensary initiative on the November 2010 ballot. The initiative will create a regulated medical marijuana supply system to ensure that all Oregon patients have safe, convenient access to quality controlled medical marijuana. Oregon already has a successful medical marijuana law with over 28,000 patients registered by over 3,000 different doctors. The current law requires patients to grow their own or designate a grower but makes it a felony to pay that person for labor. This has left many patients struggling to obtain their medicine.
The new law will allow licensed farmers to sell marijuana to nonprofit dispensaries who will sell medical marijuana products to any registered patient. It will also create a program to assist indigent patients with obtaining a minimum supply and authorizes the health department to conduct research to establish quality control standards. Farmers and dispensaries will pay a sales tax to fund the programs and raise revenue for other health programs.
Initiative 28 is perfectly timed to take advantage of the Obama administration's announcement that it will not interfere with state-regulated medical marijuana dispensaries. The initiative calls for the Oregon Department of Human Resources to promulgate administrative rules regarding zoning, record keeping, security, and other issues. The licensing of the farmers to produce the medicine will allow a regulated free market to bring down prices and increase quality.
Approximately 82,000 valid signatures are needed by July 2, 2010. To find out how you can help, call Voter Power at 503-224-3051 or visit www.voterpower.org.
Oregon Cannabis Tax Act 2010 (OCTA)
The Campaign for the Restoration and Regulation of Hemp (CRRH) and Oregon NORML have completed gathering the necessary 1,000 sponsorship signatures to place their initiative on the ballot. The OCTA would legalize the sale, possession, and personal cultivation of marijuana in Oregon. Additionally, the OCTA establishes cannabis-only stores where marijuana would be sold.
Individuals who wish to grow and sell marijuana would be required to obtain a state license. Adults could cultivate their own personal marijuana for recreational use without obtaining a license. A vast majority of the profits from the sale of marijuana would go to fund state programs and drug treatment programs. Two percent of the tax collected on marijuana sold in the cannabis-only stores would be set aside for two state commissions that promot industrial hemp-based biodiesel, fiber, protein, and oil.
Legislative news
In 2009, for the second legislative session in a row, a bill that sought to allow employers to discriminate against medical marijuana patients has been shelved after faltering in the state legislature. SB 388 attempted to permit employers to fire medical marijuana patients for using their medicine upon the recommendation of a doctor, with no regard given to whether the patient was actually impaired while on the job. Although SB 388 is now dead, how employers treat medical marijuana patients will continue to be debated until the start of the 2011 session, when this legislation is likely to rear its ugly head once again. Please send a letter to the editor of your local newspaper urging Oregonians to oppose this type of legislation in the future.
In addition, at the request of several law enforcement organizations, the Senate Judiciary Committee has proposed several bills, from SB 957 to SB 960, which would negatively affect Oregon's medical marijuana law. They have all been referred to Human Services and Rural Health Policy.
Stay connected
Thank you for supporting the Marijuana Policy Project and all of our allies. If you have any questions concerning the status of marijuana policy reform in Oregon, you can contact MPP at state@mpp.org. Also, be sure to subscribe to MPP's free legislative alert service today.
