The 2024 Oregon legislative session kicked off yesterday. It’s a brief session this yr, with adjournment sine die set for March 10. No matter hasn’t handed by that day might be scuttled to 2025, or fade to black solely.
This yr, we’ve however one hashish invoice to cowl– until you depend HB 4093, which might require no less than one Oregon Liquor and Hashish Fee (OLCC) commissioner to have a public well being background. This stuffy proposal has been batted round in prior periods however didn’t turn into legislation.
Anyway, the hashish invoice for 2024 is HB 4121. It’s topically broad. HB 4121 was drafted by legislative hashish guru Rob Bovett, who now not works for the counties however continues to carry out a invaluable public service in drafting Oregon’s hashish legal guidelines, as he has since perpetually. Rob tells me his marching orders for 2024 have been to submit one thing noncontroversial, bipartisan and bi-cameral. HB 4093 is usually that (see Rob’s testimony right here).
Why does the invoice need to be noncontroversial, and so forth.? I defined in my annual “State of the State” submit in December that:
The primary large activity for CIAO [Oregon’s newly consolidated cannabis trade group] ought to come up within the 2024 legislative session. The Oregon legislature appears much less eager on coping with hashish points over the previous few periods, than traditionally. Given collateral injury to OCA from the La Mota scandal and all the oxygen being taken up by Measure 110 scrutiny, CIAO could have its work minimize out come February.
Sure, Measure 110 dialogue round drug recriminalization goes to dominate this session, alongside housing points. Hashish is both an afterthought or a 3rd rail, relying on who you ask. With that temporary orientation, under is what HB 4121 would do.
Enforcement collaboration (Sections 1 to six)
In 2021, Oregon handed a legislation often called HB 3000. I defined on the time that HB 3000 “did one million issues.” HB 4121 would carry a number of of them ahead, together with: 1) authorizing collaborative mapping of develop websites to tell legislation enforcement the place licensed develop websites are positioned; 2) setting guidelines to tell apart marijuana from hemp; 3) granting the Oregon Division of Agriculture (ODA) authority to order destruction of crops “presumptively thought-about to be marijuana” beneath the aforesaid guidelines; 4) permitting ODA and OLCC to collaboratively examine hemp crops, alongside the Nationwide Guard if the Governor so orders. I’m informed the Southern Oregon sheriffs want to see these provisions cross, particularly.
Hemp product registration and labeling (Sections 7 to 14)
This matter additionally arises out of HB 3000, by means of a activity pressure. And it’s a rehash of final yr’s HB 3049, which was waylaid and died within the methods and means committee (my protection right here).
These sections create a registration system and labeling requirements for hemp merchandise containing cannabinoids which are meant for human or animal consumption. To be clear, we’re speaking about merchandise that adults in Oregon may purchase in locations like gasoline stations and grocery shops. Registration wouldn’t be required for fiber, grain merchandise or topical merchandise.
Some makers of hemp-derived cannabinoids are going to assist these sections, whereas others might be strongly opposed. The FDA isn’t imposing one of these labeling and sure corporations might threat dropping shelf house at Entire Meals and elsewhere if pressured to elaborate on the composition of sure merchandise.
Marijuana license caps and moratorium (sections 15 to twenty)
It is a large deal! And fascinating. Oregon has been limping together with short-term licensing “pauses” and moratoria for nearly six years. The latest of those got here by way of HB 4016, which expanded a marijuana licensing moratorium to all licensing sorts besides testing labs; and which stays in impact till March 31 of this yr.
Trade is now proposing to instate a everlasting, arduous cap on the variety of licenses, whereas grandfathering anybody already within the system. The caps can be tied to inhabitants metrics, as follows:
- For manufacturing and retail licenses, “not a couple of lively license per 7,500 residents within the state who’re 21 years of age or older.”
- For processor and wholesaler licenses, “not a couple of lively license per 12,500 residents within the state who’re 21 years or older.”
By my math, if this language holds Oregon wouldn’t problem new hashish licenses in most or all of those classes, perpetually. For instance: we’ve roughly 2,429,348 Oregonians 21 years of age. This implies the cap on retail licenses going ahead can be 324. We at present have 863 of them.
It’s value noting that OLCC at present caps the variety of liquor shops on a inhabitants schedule. For liquor gross sales, I’m informed it’s 12,000 folks per retailer. That is an imperfect analogue for marijuana, as a result of in contrast to with liquor, OLCC doesn’t personal the product and promote it via to retail. Additionally, on the liquor aspect, the “cap” is applied beneath a seemingly discretionary administrative rule. However the liquor regime might be the place the notion got here from.
Precisely how the hashish business got here up with these ratios is a narrative for one more day. Let’s see if Oregon lastly caps licenses as soon as and for all. If it occurs, OLCC might lastly need to get into rulemaking round license reassignment concepting. Alternatively, if this session implodes resulting from one other Republican walk-out, or if HB 4016 is in any other case allowed to sundown, put together to observe the secondary marketplace for hashish license gross sales crater. PRO TIP: anybody seeking to “purchase a license” proper now may be clever to attend a minute.
Minor decoy operations (Sections 21 to 23)
These sections present OLCC authority to conduct minor decoy operations in different locales than licensed dispensaries. Beneath these provisions, OLCC may place younger ’uns in locations like smoke retailers and different purveyors of high-THC, hemp-derived gadgets. The Fee would even be required to develop and promote uniform requirements for the stings.
Short-term employee permits (Sections 24 to 31)
Right here, the invoice would permit candidates for marijuana employee permits to begin work whereas their purposes are being processed. OLCC permits this on the liquor aspect. At the moment, OLCC is caught up on utility processing for marijuana employees, however short-term permits may show helpful someday down the road.
Conclusion
March 10 might be right here earlier than we all know it, and testimony on HB 4131 is rolling in quick. Once I logged on this afternoon I discovered six or so submissions. This night, the quantity was up over 40.
It’s unlikely we’ll see some other payments proposed this session on the hashish aspect given different legislative priorities in 2024, and given the traditional limitations of a five-week session. So seize your popcorn and revel in. I’ll examine in on the finish of the session or if something particularly fascinating occurs prior.
