Oregon provides $ 25 million to help fight the illegal cultivation of cannabis

Oregon lawmakers passed laws to tackle the burgeoning illegal cannabis cultivation in the state and allocated $ 25 million to help law enforcement and community organizations fight the illegal cannabis cultivation.

Oregon voters legalized recreational marijuana and approved regulated cannabis production and sale in 2014. Since then, illegal growers have emerged in droves, particularly in southern Klamath, Jackson, and Josephine counties of the state. State Sen. Jeff Golden, who worked last week to put the bill on the agenda of a one-day special session, said some rural Oregon areas are “military weapon zones we normally associate with failed states.” . “

Golden said many of the illegal farms are operated by criminal cartels, guilty of human trafficking, labor abuse, local intimidation and water theft during an ongoing drought.

“Illegal cannabis operations in southern Oregon have used our limited water supplies, abused local workers, threatened neighbors and negatively impacted businesses run by legal marijuana growers,” added Golden.

The measure, Senate Bill 893, was passed by Oregon state legislatures on December 13 and enacted the following day by Governor Kate Brown. The new law provides a $ 25 million Illegal Marijuana Market Enforcement Grant Program to help local police, sheriff’s departments and other organizations fight illegal cannabis cultivation in their communities, including $ 5 million for the enforcement of water rights. Local law enforcement agencies who receive grants from the program must work with community-based groups to tackle human trafficking.

Earlier this year, Golden and State Representatives Pam Marsh and Lily Morgan wrote a letter to the governor asking for help fighting illegal cannabis cultivation in Oregon’s Rogue Valley.

“The harmful effects, including human trafficking in labor in conditions close to slavery, the severe aggravation of the drought through massive and systematic water theft, long-term damage to agricultural land from various environmentally harmful practices, and the financial ruin of licensed farmers who comply with obligations that the.” Making competition impossible is difficult to overestimate, ”they wrote.

Is it hemp or cannabis?

Much of the illegal cannabis cultivation takes place on farms that allegedly grow hemp, which was legalized at the federal level with the 2018 Farm Bill and is far less regulated than cannabis. The Oregon Health Authority and the Oregon Liquor and Cannabis Commission recently reported that nearly half of the state-controlled registered hemp farms actually grow cannabis. According to government agencies, around 25 percent of the hemp farms refused entry to inspectors.

Jackson County Sheriff Nathan Sickler told lawmakers that the cartels “have a business model: grow more illegal cannabis cultivation than law enforcement can ever get. They know we’ll get some, but they know we can’t get everything. “

A southern Oregon farmer told the Associated Press that a stream he used to irrigate his crops dried up because illegal cannabis cultivation stole the water. He believes the state doesn’t have enough inspectors to ensure that the farms are actually growing hemp and not cannabis. He also blames landowners who sell or lease property to shady operators.

“If someone comes to your property with a suitcase containing $ 100,000 in $ 20 bills, you know they’re not on the rise,” said the unknown farmer. “And if you take that money and allow them to do something on your land, you should probably expect them to break the law.”

Local official declares a state of emergency

In October, Jackson County officials declared a state of emergency over the illegal cultivation of cannabis and called for help from Brown, Senate President Peter Courtney and Oregon House spokeswoman Tina Kotek.

“Jackson County urgently needs your assistance in dealing with this emergency,” wrote members of the county’s Board of Commissioners in a letter to state leaders.

The commissioners called for funds, manpower and state troops from the National Guard to solve the problem of illegal marijuana cultivation in the county. Board members said law enforcement, local code compliance officials and state cannabis regulators were overwhelmed by the illegal activities and warned of “an imminent threat to the public health and safety of our citizens from illegal cannabis production in our county” . . “

Passed by the legislature as an emergency measure, Senate Act 893 comes into effect with immediate effect. Morgan told reporters that bills slated for the 2022 legislature will continue to address the issue.

Residents and law enforcement officials welcomed the funds provided by the legislation, but predicted that $ 25 million will not be enough to control the problem of illegal cannabis production in Oregon.

“It will help,” said Josephine County Sheriff Dave Daniel. “But the problem is metastasizing nationwide.”