Smith named to Measure 110 panel
By Terry Murry on Monday, February 5th, 2024 in Columbia Basin News More Top Stories
SALEM – Oregon State Rep. Greg Smith (R-Heppner) was appointed to serve on the Joint Committee on Addiction and Community Safety Response by Speaker of the House Dan Rayfield Friday. That’s the committee tasked with reviewing Oregon’s drug decriminalization measure and proposing solutions to threats to public safety as well as the behavioral health crisis in Oregon.
“This is going to be a very challenging committee as we are tackling very serious issues,” Smith said in a prepared statement. “My approach will be one of justice and mercy. Oregon must hold people accountable for crimes they have committed but the state must also ensure that people in crisis have adequate access to resources. Striking a balance between criminal accountability and the need for behavioral health resources will be key to this committee’s success.”
In an earlier interview, Smith told Elkhorn Media Group that he believes a fix is possible.
“At the end of the day, there’s no doubt we need to be focused on that effort to assist our schools, assist our communities, and assist our businesses,” he said in November. “That will be my priority in February.”
The 35-day-long short session begins today (Monday). Short sessions are usually used to make budget corrections and tweaks to existing laws.
It appears in talks leading up to the session that drug possession will be recriminalized in Oregon. Rayfield has said that law enforcement needs the tools to be able to confiscate hard drugs like methamphetamine and fentanyl. Political observers report many Democrats want possession to be a class C misdemeanor while Republicans want it at the highest class A level. It’s also considered possible the Legislature will vote to make public drug use illegal. While municipalities can outlaw public drunkenness, they cannot do the same with narcotics use.
The second major issue facing the Legislature is Gov. Tina Kotek’s request for $500 million in additional funding for a variety of housing development and land use laws. One of her more controversial plans is allowing cities to move their urban growth boundaries in order to build more housing. Kotek wants Oregon to add 36,000 housing units a year statewide. Currently Oregon is building an estimated 18,000 to 20,000.
