The Joint Committee on Implementing Measure 91 was scheduled to hold another work session on HB 3400 and HB 2041 on Wednesday, but early Wednesday, that meeting was cancelled.
Reportedly, Senator Ferrioli sent out a late-night email on Tuesday saying that he was no longer satisfied with the local opt-out provisions, and that he wouldn’t be willing to move forward with the bills if these were not altered. The Oregonian reported on Friday that the proposed resolution was to allow counties that voted at least 55% opposed to Measure 91 in the 2014 election to opt out through a vote of the city council or county commissioners without requiring a vote of their citizens. Other counties would be able to take advantage of the opt-out provisions as expressed in Measure 91, requiring citizens to vote on the issue before implementing any bans on licensed operations. This effectively dissects Oregon in half, with most of Eastern Oregon above the 55% threshold and Western Oregon below that threshold.
Russ Belville satirized the topic for marijuanapolitics.com. The following image from his article illustrates the counties in red that can ban medical dispensaries and retail outlets without requiring a vote of the citizens:
Illustration provided by Russ Belville on marijuanapolitics.com
The Committee is expected to hold a meeting on Monday, including the new proposed language for opting out. The meeting was pushed up to an earlier start time of 4:30 pm and will address HB 3400 and HB 2041.
