Tag: decriminalization

Oregon Governor Will Sign Bill Overturning Voter-Approved Drug Decriminalization Law

Gov. Tina Kotek (D) said she plans to sign the centerpiece bill that lawmakers passed in response to the state’s soaring drug addiction and fentanyl overdoses.

House Bill 4002, a compromise proposal that won bipartisan support, will recriminalize possession of small amounts of hard drugs, reversing part of Measure 110, which voters approved in 2020. The bill has provisions to offer drug users multiple opportunities to enter treatment after an encounter with a police officer.

“Finally, reforms to Measure 110 will start to take shape, as I intend to sign House Bill 4002 and the related prevention and treatment investments within the next 30 days,” Kotek said in a statement released late Thursday. “As governor, my focus is on implementation.”

She has 30 business days to sign or veto the 115 bills that were passed, and once that happens, the $211 million lawmakers approved can be distributed. It would provide money for outpatient clinics, residential facilities, sobering centers, opioid treatment in jail, public defenders and court diversion programs. They also allocated $18 million for recovery houses.

A new misdemeanor would take effect in September, with up to 180 days in jail if probation is revoked.

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Oregon Legislators Overwhelmingly Vote To Recriminalize Low-Level Drug Possession

Oregon legislators last week overwhelmingly approved recriminalization of low-level drug possession, reversing a landmark reform that voters endorsed when they passed Measure 110 in 2020. Gov. Tina Kotek has indicated that she is inclined to sign the bill, ratifying a regression driven by unrealistic expectations and unproven assertions.

“With this bill,” Senate Majority Leader Kate Lieber (D–Portland) claims, “we are doubling down on our commitment to make sure Oregonians have access to the treatment and care that they need.” But Oregon is not merely making sure that people “have access” to treatment; it is foisting “help” on people who do not want it by threatening them with incarceration.

H.B. 4002 makes drug possession a misdemeanor punishable by up to six months in jail. A defendant can avoid that outcome by enrolling in a treatment program.

Under Measure 110, by contrast, drug possession became a Class E violation punishable by a $100 fine. Drug users could avoid the fine by completing a “health assessment” at an “addiction recovery center.” The initiative said the assessment should “prioritize the self-identified needs of the client” and refer him to appropriate services. But Measure 110 did not make agreement to those services mandatory.

The initiative’s supporters argued that coercive treatment is both less effective and more ethically problematic than voluntary treatment. “Research suggests that, except in certain circumstances where drug users are uniquely self‐​motivated (such as doctors and commercial airline pilots who fear losing their licenses), coercive treatment is futile at best and may increase the likelihood of overdose in people who relapse after release from treatment,” Jeffrey Singer notes in a Cato Institute blog post.

The policy embodied by H.B. 4002 is notably different from the legal approach to alcohol abusers, who generally cannot be forced into treatment unless they commit crimes such as driving while intoxicated. Measure 110’s supporters argued that abuse of those substances likewise should be treated as a health issue rather than a criminal matter.

Over 58 percent of voters agreed. But a continuing increase in opioid-related deaths, coupled with nuisances related to public drug use, soured Oregonians on Measure 110. By last August, at which point the initiative had been in effect for only a year and a half, an Emerson College poll found that 64 percent of Oregon voters favored reinstating criminal penalties for possession.

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Vermont Lawmakers Consider Removing Psilocybin Legalization Provision From Psychedelic Study Group Bill

A Vermont legislative panel continued its consideration on Thursday of a bill that would legalize psilocybin in the state and establish a work group on how to further regulate psychedelics for therapeutic use.

Though members of the Senate Health and Welfare Committee took no formal action on the measure, S. 114, they heard invited testimony and signaled their openness to making a number of changes to the underlying proposal—including removing the legalization portion and instead making that an issue for the work group to study.

“It could be that decriminalization is going to get in the way of therapeutic use,” said Sen. Ginny Lyons (D), the committee chair. “What we’re looking for is the value of therapeutic use.”

Other possible changes to the bill raised by lawmakers during the hearing included adjusting the membership of the work group, for example to remove members of the legislature and add a representative from the University of Vermont Medical School—something Lyons suggested during the committee’s initial consideration of the bill last month.

Additional members of the panel would include representatives from Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, the state Office of Professional Regulation and the advocacy group Decriminalize Nature.

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Oregon House Passes Bill To Reverse Voter-Approved Drug Decriminalization Law

The Oregon House on Thursday passed a proposal to reshape the state’s response to the fentanyl addiction and overdose crisis and put more power in the hands of police and prosecutors to rein in drug users.

The bipartisan vote of 51-7 kicks House Bill 4002 to the Senate, the last step in a long legislative process that started last fall. The bill would unwind voter-passed Measure 110 by putting in place a new misdemeanor charge for drug possession, a move intended to encourage people to enter treatment programs rather than face charges and go to jail. Potential jail time for misdemeanor drug possession would only kick in if a defendant violates their probation.

The bill represents a bipartisan compromise between Democrats and Republicans that was hashed out over hours-long meetings dating to September, with dozens of witnesses from advocacy groups, law enforcement, family members of overdose victims and behavioral health providers giving testimony. Oregon’s district attorneys, police and sheriffs support it, as do cities and business groups like the Portland Metro Chamber of Commerce and Washington County Chamber of Commerce.

“We are in the midst of a profound public health crisis and we must meet it with compassion and courage,” said Rep. Maxine Dexter, D-Portland. “These are humans.”

The bill would undo a key provision of the voter-passed Measure 110, which decriminalized possession of small amounts of hard drugs and enacted a system of $100 citations that a person could avoid if they obtained a health assessment. Police have said the citation system lacked the teeth necessary to encourage people to enter treatment, and a majority of Oregonians in surveys have voiced support for repealing Measure 110 or parts of it.

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Connecticut Lawmakers File Psilocybin Decriminalization Bill Despite Governor’s Concerns

Connecticut lawmakers have revived an effort to decriminalize low-level possession of psilocybin, despite the governor’s office recently indicating that it has concerns about the psychedelics reform.

A new bill filed by the legislature’s Joint Judiciary Committee and cosponsored by Rep. David Michel (D) would make possession of up to one-half an ounce of psilocybin punishable by a $150 fine, without the threat of jail time.

A second or subsequent violation would carry a fine of at least $200 but not more than $500. A person who pleads guilty or no contest on two separate occasions would be referred to a substance misuse treatment program

Police would be require to seize and destroy any amount of the psychedelic they find under the measure, HB 5297. Possession of more than a half-ounce of psilocybin would be considered a Class A misdemeanor.

An earlier version of the psilocybin decriminalization bill passed the House last year but did not advance in the Senate.

Lawmakers and activists held an informational forum last month to discuss the therapeutic potential of substances such as psilocybin and potential pathways to allow for regulated access.

“We are inspired by the leadership of the Judiciary Committee to continue the conversation on how to responsibly decriminalize psilocybin and stand ready to assist the legislature and the governor in working through any concerns,” Jason Ortiz, policy director of Connecticut for Accessible Psychedelic Medicine who also serves as director of strategic initiatives for the Last Prisoner Project, told Marijuana Moment.

“While the bill is a great start, there’s still room for improvement by including home cultivation and retroactive relief for those who were criminalized for simply seeking a better quality of life,” he said.

Meanwhile, as the legislation is being introduced, the office of Gov. Ned Lamont (D) has signaled that it may face a major barrier to enactment.

“The governor has concerns about broad decriminalization of mushrooms,” spokesperson David Bednarz said last month, noting that at the time it was “a bit too early to speculate” because a 2024 bill had not yet been filed yet.

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Did Decriminalization Boost Drug Deaths in Oregon?

Oregon is considering legislation that would recriminalize low-level drug possession, reversing a landmark reform that voters approved in 2020. Although critics of that ballot initiative, Measure 110, cite escalating drug-related deaths, decriminalization is not responsible for that trend.

Opioid overdose fatalities have been rising nationwide for more than two decades. That trend was accelerated by the emergence of illicit fentanyl as a heroin booster and substitute, a development that hit Western states after it was apparent in other parts of the country.

“Overdose mortality rates started climbing in [the] Northeast, South, and Midwest in 2014 as the percent of deaths related to fentanyl increased,” RTI International epidemiologist Alex H. Kral and his colleagues noted at a conference in Salem, Oregon, last month. “Overdose mortality rates in Western states did not start rising until 2020, during COVID and a year after the introduction of fentanyl.”

That lag explains why Oregon has seen a sharper rise in opioid-related deaths than most of the country since 2020. But so have California, Nevada, and Washington, neighboring states where drug possession remains a crime.

Decriminalization under Measure 110 took effect in February 2021, and a 2023 Journal of Health Economics study estimated that it was associated with a 23 percent increase in “unintentional drug overdose deaths” that year. But “after adjusting for the rapid escalation of fentanyl,” Brown University public health researcher Brandon del Pozo reported at the Salem conference, “analysis found no association between [Measure 110] and fatal drug overdose rates.”

Kral and his collaborators concurred, saying “there is no evidence that increases in overdose mortality in Oregon are due to” decriminalization. That is consistent with the results of a 2023 JAMA Psychiatry study, which found “no evidence” that Measure 110 was “associated with changes in fatal drug overdose rates” during the first year.

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Maine Democratic Governor And GOP Senate Leader Oppose Bill To Decriminalize Drugs And Invest In Treatment

Maine saw a reduction in the number of overdose deaths in 2023. But with hundreds upon hundreds of drug-related deaths last year, advocates and lawmakers say the state is still in the midst of a serious crisis.

In total, there were 607 confirmed or suspected overdose deaths in 2023, a 16 percent drop from the record total of 723 in 2022. Along with the 607 deaths, there were 9,047 confirmed nonfatal overdoses last year (compared to 9,760 in 2022).

“I think it’s hard to talk about this because that’s still 607 people who died last year and I don’t want to celebrate that whatsoever,” said Courtney Gary-Allen, organizing director of the Maine Recovery Advocacy Project. “That being said, there is a reduction, and I think we should be proud of the work that we’ve all collectively done on this issue.”

Gary-Allen cited investments in treatment by Gov. Janet Mills’ administration, the bipartisan consensus that substance use is a serious crisis that needs to be addressed, and the passage of the Good Samaritan law—which created enhanced protections from prosecution at the scene of an overdose to encourage people to call for help—as possible reasons for the reduction in deaths in 2023. Others have also cited the increased availability of the opioid overdose reversal naloxone.

Still, Gary-Allen said there is much more to do to address the overdose epidemic.

“I still have the faces in my head” of those who have died from drug overdoses, she said.

One proposal, backed by advocates in the recovery community and sponsored by Rep. Lydia Crafts (D-Newcastle), is to decriminalize the personal possession of illegal drugs and invest in an array of treatment options.

Supporters of the measure argue that criminalizing drug use pushes people into the shadows, making it harder for them to get help. Policing drug use and imprisoning people for substance use-related crimes also takes money away from a treatment-based approach, proponents of the bill say.

In all, policy analysts estimate the state could save around $45 million a year from not punishing people for possession of small amounts of drugs. Under the terms of the proposal, that money would then be invested into expanding what advocates say are often scant treatment options around the state.

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Fifth Michigan City Approves Local Psychedelics Decriminalization Resolution

Another Michigan city has approved a resolution to locally deprioritize enforcement of laws against psychedelic substances, while expressing support for a statewide bill to legalize certain etheogenic plants and fungi.

On Tuesday, the Ypsilanti City Council took testimony from supporters and passed the psychedelics measure in an unanimous 6-0 vote.

The whereas section states that psychedelics can “catalyze profound experiences of personal and spiritual growth, have been shown by scientific and clinical studies and traditional practices to be beneficial to the health and well-being of individuals and communities in addressing” conditions such as anxiety and post-traumatic stress.

It also points out that the Washtenaw County District Attorney’s office expressed support for a similar resolution that was adopted in Ann Arbor in 2020.

The latest measure specifically says that it is not intended to legalize the commercial sale of psychedelics, but it makes the arrest and investigation of people for psychedelics-related activities such as possession and cultivation “the lowest law enforcement priority for the City of Ypsilanti.”

It also declares that “city funds or resources shall not be used in any investigation, detention, arrest, or prosecution arising out of alleged violations of state and federal law regarding the use of Entheogenic Plants.”

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Oregon Secretary Of State Says Drug Decriminalization Measure Has Improved Treatment, Though Gaps Still Remain

Measure 110 has helped the growth of treatment and recovery services for drug addiction, but the state can do more to better manage the program, according to a report released Wednesday by the Oregon secretary of state’s office.

Lawmakers mandated the financial review, which looks at services that were established starting in 2022, two years after voters passed Measure 110, decriminalizing possession of small amounts of drugs and putting a share of cannabis revenue into treatment and recovery services.

Since 2022, the state has awarded $264 million in grants to 233 providers throughout Oregon that provide treatment, counseling and harm reduction, which can include distribution of clean needles. The review looked at where that money has gone and what providers are reporting to state officials. It did not consider how many people have been treated or received services or gauge the impact to society.

The findings come amid a call by Republicans for repeal of Measure 110, consideration by Democrats of needed changes to the law and a fentanyl-fueled rise in addiction and overdoses.

“Since it’s been implemented, the top question on everyone’s minds has been: Is Measure 110 working?” Audits Director Kip Memmott said in a statement. “It’s a complicated question to answer and much of the public conversation about Measure 110 is outside the scope of this review. We identified important progress being made, but it’s clear there is still much work to be done.”

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Eureka, CA Decriminalizes Psychedelic Plant Medicines

Eureka, CA, has passed a resolution decriminalizing entheogens and psychedelic plant medicines, making it the sixth California city to do so and the second such city in Humboldt County.

The Eureka City Council unanimously approved an initiative last week to decriminalize plant medicines such as psilocybin mushrooms within city limits. The announcement came less than two weeks after CA Gov. Gavin Newsom vetoed an initiative which would have decriminalized psychedelics statewide. The City of Arcata, just a few miles to the north, voted to decriminalize in 2021 thanks to efforts by a group who also provided the language used in the Eureka resolution, Decriminalize Nature Humboldt.

According to an article in the Lost Coast Outpost, the resolution was passed without much trouble from the council, though a particular phrase was removed from the language of the bill. The council voted to remove language which seemed to endorse entheogenic plants’ ability to “catalyze profound experiences of personal and spiritual growth.” Not for nothing, but one of recently deceased Johns Hopkins professor Roland Griffiths’ first studies on psilocybin in 2006 was on psilocybin’s ability to induce mystical and spiritual experiences in the user. Much of Griffiths’ later work at Johns Hopkins has been referenced in similar legislative discussions surrounding the legality of psychedelics.

Other than the removal of the aforementioned phrase, the resolution was passed without much protest from the rest of the council members.There were some concerns voiced by local law enforcement representatives, mirroring Gov. Newsom’s concerns about potentially unforeseen consequences to the resolution. City Manager Miles Slattery, however, pointed out that he had consulted with the Arcata Police Department who reported no serious issues to him after just over two years of psychedelic decriminalization. He also pointed out that the City of Eureka only saw five cases of arrests related to entheogens in the previous year and almost every case was related to something more serious such as domestic violence. 

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