Tags: Chris Hurst, marijuana

This week’s Q&A is with House Minority Leader Richard DeBolt and Senate Majority Leader Lisa Brown. I’ve posted the interview in the order in which they were conducted, as usual, asked each the same broad questions, and included everything each lawmaker said. The conversations cover marijuana, public safety bills, taxes and job creation. And no interview would be complete without talking about the budget. Enjoy.

Rep. Richard DeBolt:

Q: There are currently bills to close state government for one day per month, limit state worker salaries and another in the House to make official about $50 million in cuts from Gov. Chris Gregoire’s budget. Which of those do you support, what other ideas do you have and what’s the timeline?

DeBolt: I guess the first thing that I would like to say about it is we saw some of these problems because we have a systematically flawed budget process. We have to change how we budget and what our priorities are.
I would break the budgeting process up: I would do an education only budget first. It’s our paramount duty, so we should fund it first. Then we can fund public safety and the vulnerable. Then, with whatever is left, you make the rest of your budget. So you protect the children and the most vulnerable.

Q: What about the furloughs?

DeBolt: As far as furloughs, we haven’t had a chance to explore the bills fully yet. The bills were introduced and the process probably broke down a little bit so we don’t have all the details yet.
From my perspective, we think everything should be on the table. We need to make sure that what we’re doing to balance the budget is real – not just delaying costs until later.

Q: You mentioned an education-first budget. When I was covering the Oregon Legislature in 2005, the Republican House Speaker suggested a similar proposal to fund education first.

DeBolt: Oh yeah — and what happened?

Q: It didn’t pass, and they were in session for about eight months that year because the Republican-controlled House and Democratic-controlled Senate couldn’t agree on much. Why is that a controversial idea?

DeBolt: I remember that. We’ve been suggesting the education-budget first idea since 2002. We haven’t even gotten a hearing on it.

Q: Why do you think that is?

DeBolt: I think that Olympia is stuck in the past and has a tendency to be myopic in their viewpoints. So if its outside the box, it’s probably not going to be considered. We’re not a super change-oriented place.

Q: So would closing state government for one day a month be something you could support?

DeBolt: I don’t know because for some services, it could be problematic. For example, I want to get our permitting wait times down. Can they do the same amount of work if we’re furloughing people? That’s of interest to me. I don’t know how the functions of government would be changed. I don’t know if you can just arbitrarily close all the agencies and make it work. If it’s agencies that support our economy and help move us forward, we shouldn’t slow that down.

Q: One big policy issue has been public safety, in the wake of the police shootings last year. A Constitutional amendment is on the table — is that the right move? Is there danger in amending the Constitution so soon after these crimes? (more…)

Tags: Budget, cuts, marijuana, public safety, taxes

Here are a few highlights from today’s calendar:

- Right now, tune into floor session.

- At 1:30 p.m., the House Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness Committee will decide whether to decriminalize or legalize marijuana. Last week, Rep. Mary Lou Dickerson told me she thought the bill to decriminalize marijuana had a good chance, but PubliCola and The Stranger report that the bill is dead. This will be live on TVW.

- Also at 1:30, the House Commerce Committee is considering a bill to outlaw beverages like “Joose” that combine alcohol and caffeine or other stimulants.

- At the same time, the Senate will Ways & Means Committee will hear an overview of the Capital Budget. That will play on TVW later.

- At 3:30, the Senate Higher Education Committee will discuss whether UW and other four-year universities should be able to set their own tuition. That’s live on TVW.

Tags: alcohol, day 10, marijuana

Right now, the bills to legalize marijuana are playing live on TVW and streaming on our web site. And about 1,000 people all over the world are watching.

Here’s a list of the countries of origin of people watching right now, courtesy of our web department:
Australia, Canada, Chile, Costa Rica, Germany, Estonia, France, Ireland, Japan, Korea and, of course, the U.S.

In fact, the number of people watching is about the same as the number who watched Gov. Chris Gregoire’s State of the State address yesterday.

Here’s a screen shot of the map. I will say it looks way more impressive in person, in the TVW web team’s control room.

Tags: marijuana, TVW

Rep. Roger Goodman, one of the prime sponsors of the bill to legalize marijuana, just testified.

“One million students in the U.S. sell marijuana,” he said, adding that it’s easier for students to get than beer. Goodman said legalizing marijuana would mean it’s regulated.

Goodman said he’s on law enforcement’s side on this one. “Law enforcement is not getting the respect that they deserve” because they’re faced with trying to enforce a law that is widely ignored, he said.

“We’ve already given up. We’ve given up control of this market to criminal enterprises,” he said. If lawmakers legalize it, they can regulate it and keep it away from children.

Tags: Goodman, marijuana

Rep. Mary Lou Dickerson is now testifying on the bill to legalize marijuana. She said she initially supported the bill because it would help address the state’s budget problems.

But she also thinks “over the last decade we have wasted scores of taxpayer dollars on investigation, court proceedings and incarceration,” with no significant decrease in marijuana use.

“Legalization brings incredible fiscal benefits,” she said. She said many criminals are behind bars for marijuana-related offenses, and the Liquor Control Board estimates the bill would bring in $300 million per biennium.

To that, the crowd clapped. Rep. Hurst, chairman of the committee, said told them that’s not acceptable behavior in committee.

“I liken our present policy to Prohibition,” she said, “without Prohibition, Al Capone would have faded away,” she said, comparing Capone to Mexican drug rings that import drugs.

“We have no good science that shows that,” she said, of the notion that marijuana is a “gateway drug.”

Tags: Dickerson, marijuana

“By the level of interest, I think that shows that it’s time to have a conversation,” Upthegrove said. He is the sponsor of HB 1177.

He said he’s driven by public safety, responsible spending of taxpayer dollars and family. “Any drug policy measure that moves us in the direction of help and support … to help those loved ones turn their lives around, not only their lives but the lives of their families, is a good thing.”

He said the conflict with federal law wouldn’t be an issue because state and federal laws don’t always have to overlap precisely. He also said he believes that marijuana can be addictive and dangerous, but that drug policy needs to be revamped in a way that addresses addiction and help.

“This bill not only will save money, it will help keep communities safer.”

Tags: marijuana, Upthegrove

The House Public Safety Committee is now live on TVW. They’re discussing bills to legalize marijuana.

Rep. Chris Hurst said the bills were scheduled for executive session — meaning, they were on schedule to be voted on — but that the prime sponsors asked that a vote not happen today. So they’ll vote next Wednesday at the regularly scheduled meeting.

Tune in now to watch.

And here are the bills:
- HB 1177 would make marijuana possession a civil infraction for adults
- While HB 2401 would make marijuana legal. It would be sold in liquor stores. Marijuana farmers would be licensed under the Dept. of Agriculture.

Tags: marijuana

Former lawmaker Toby Nixon just testified on a bill in the Senate Judiciary Committee to decriminalize the possession of marijuana — less than 40 grams, that is.

Here’s the bill. It would charge those under 18 with less than 40 grams with a misdemeanor. Those over 18 with less than 40 grams would face a civil infraction — like a parking ticket — and a fine of $100.

Nixon said, “The most dangerous thing about marijuana is getting arrested for it.” He told committee members that it’s less addictive than caffeine or alcohol.

Sen. Adam Kline said that, in his experience, marijuana is a gateway drug . “I used to grow my own dope, now I brew my own beer,” he said. He was kidding, but when Sen. Pam Roach asked for clarification of whether it was a gateway drug, he said, “It is.”

I’ll have more as I go over the video, which you can find here.

Tags: marijuana