When in pdx prior to xmas listening to some of the more conservative members of the judiciary at a conference i was co-hosting whining about how downtown had been turned into a free for all for all those young people on drugs etc etc it wasn’t hard to see this coming.
The thing about Portland and Oregon is that underneath all that upfront liberalism is still a very Eisenhower conservatism that will never be shifted and it’s now popping its head above the parapet to see what happens. They seem to want to use the carrot and the stick, the issue is will it end up being more stick than carrot and then they are back to square one.
Oregon Capital Chronicle writes
Oregon House Republican lawmakers on Thursday released details of a proposal that would end Measure 110 by mandating misdemeanor penalties for drug possession and treatment to avoid jail.
House Republicans want to make possession of small amounts of fentanyl, heroin and meth a Class A misdemeanor, which carries up to a year in jail, a fine of up to $6,250, or both. Under the bill, users could avoid jail time with mandatory addiction treatment. The bill also would impose a similar misdemeanor penalty for public drug use.
In the coming weeks, Democratic lawmakers, who hold the majority in the Legislature, plan to release detailed proposals to address drug addiction for the short, 35-day session, which starts February 5.
Oregon voters in 2020 passed Measure 110, which decriminalizes possession of small amounts of hard drugs and puts a share of cannabis revenue into addiction programs and services. Criticism since then has mounted, with reaction split: Measure 110 supporters are urging Oregonians to give the measure a chance to succeed as programs begin. Others say smaller changes to the law are necessary to address public drug use and allow police to intervene. And others want Measure 110 repealed.
“The citizens of Oregon understand the failures of Measure 110,” said Rep. Rick Lewis (R-Silverton) one of the six GOP chief sponsors of the proposal. “We see the results on the streets, in the unacceptable overdose death rate and in the catastrophic consequences to our communities, to public safety and to livability. Change is needed, and we can’t afford to take small steps that fail to adequately address the problem.”
The proposal would require tougher prison sentences for drug dealers and manufacturers, including a mandatory prison sentence of at least three years for unlawful delivery or manufacturing of a controlled substance if they have a prior conviction within the last five years.
The bill’s chief sponsors include Reps. Kevin Mannix (R-Salem) and Christine Goodwin (R-Canyonville), who serve on the joint committee tasked with addressing the drug addiction crisis.
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