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CNN
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Oregon lawmakers overwhelmingly approved a measure that would make possession of small amounts of certain drugs in the state a misdemeanor, a move that voters previously moved to decriminalize possession and personal use of all drugs. In response to this, there are moves to re-criminalize certain drugs, such as fentanyl.
The bill, HB4002, now moves to Democratic Governor Tina Kotek’s desk for consideration. Kotek has not publicly announced whether he supports the measure, but in late January the governor joined local officials in declaring a fentanyl emergency in downtown Portland.
CNN has reached out to the governor’s office for comment.
The bill passed both chambers with bipartisan support, and the state Senate approved the bill 21-8 on Friday after passing the state House 51-7 the night before.
In 2020, Oregon passed Measure 110 with 55.8% of the vote, becoming the first state in the nation to decriminalize possession and personal use of all drugs. It came into effect in February 2021.
Under the measure approved by voters, possession of small amounts of drugs such as heroin, cocaine and methamphetamine would no longer be a prison sentence, but a punishment more akin to a traffic ticket. It also expanded access to addiction support and other health services.
Supporters of HB4002 celebrated the step in rolling back aspects of the state’s previous decriminalization efforts.
“While there will be much work for legislators to do in the upcoming legislative session to continue to advance the fentanyl overdose and addiction crisis facing our state, I will vote yes on HB 4002. “We were proud to be on the right side of history,” Senate Republican Leader Tim Knopp said in a statement.
“Passage of this bill will put Oregon on a path to recovery and end the national decriminalization movement,” he added.
Critics of the bill argue that recriminalization would disproportionately harm communities of color.
“It’s not enough to just monitor a system when we know that it’s a system that has built-in bias,” said Jennifer Parrish Taylor, director of advocacy and public policy at the Urban League of Portland. . “I’m worried that we’ll be back next year, listening to the damage and figuring out how to make our community healthy.”
This is a developing story and will be updated.
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