Measure 110 audit finds lack of accountability, slow roll out of services
By Joe Hathaway on Friday, December 22nd, 2023 in More Top Stories Northeastern Oregon News
SALEM — The Oregon Secretary of State recently released an audit of Measure 110, the controversial state law passed in 2020, aiming to decriminalize the possession of small amounts of drugs and enhance funding for substance abuse treatment. The audit, conducted by the Oregon Audits Division, sheds light on both progress and challenges in the state’s effort to transform its substance abuse treatment strategy.
Since Measure 110 passed, the state has continued to struggle with a drug use epidemic, partially fueled by “an explosion in fentanyl use,” according to the audit. As an example, the number of fentanyl pills confiscated in Oregon and Idaho’s high-intensity drug trafficking areas in 2022 was over 3 million, dwarfing the mere 690 pills seized in 2018.
According to the report, Oregon has handed out an estimated $261 million in grants for drug recovery and treatment since Measure 110 was approved in November of 2020. All that money comes from cannabis tax revenue.
The report found that behavioral health resource networks, the grant recipients, have been slow to ramp up new services, with many citing difficulties in hiring staff.
In a dozen Oregon counties, networks failed to provide Measure 110 services during a three-month period last spring. During that same period, another five counties served fewer than 15 people, according to auditors.
The report also highlighted that $1.7 million had been spent on the 24-hour hotline that is a resource for getting addiction help.
In fact, they only received 577 calls, or about one per day, costing an average of $7,000 per call. That data covers the time from February 2021 when the law was implemented through November.
The audit raises questions about the effectiveness of Measure 110, prompting Audits Director Kip Memmott to state that while progress is evident, there is still much work to be done.
Oregon Secretary of State LaVonne Griffin-Valade said the information of the audit “will help the Oregon Health Authority put the right structures in place to administer the treatment side of Measure 110” and encouraged state leaders and OHA to “follow the auditor’s recommendations.”
“There has been a lot of interest around Measure 110, and I have no doubt that many will want to look to this audit as a measuring stick for the law. That would be a mistake, as this report is narrowly focused on answering questions about the OHA’s grant making program. Within that scope, it’s a valuable tool.”
One of the biggest takeaways from the report is that there is a serious lack of accountability and data gathering. Auditors explicitly questioned whether the Oregon health authority will be able to gather enough data to demonstrate measure 110′s effectiveness by the end of 2025, when the next audit is due.
