Oregon governor signs bill criminalizing drug possession

Gov. Tina Kotek has made it official: Drug possession will soon be a crime once again in Oregon.

On Monday, Kotek signed House Bill 4002, which both expands funding for substance abuse treatment and makes possessing small amounts of hard drugs a misdemeanor beginning Sept. 1.

In a three-page signing letter, Kotek appeared to address the limitations and challenges of a law that gives individual counties sweeping power to design their own ways to implement the policy shift.

“Success of this policy framework hinges on the ability of implementing partners to commit to deep coordination at all levels,” Kotek writes. “Courts, Oregon State Police, local law enforcement, defense attorneys, district attorneys, and local behavioral health providers are all critical to these conversations and necessary partners to achieve the vision for this legislation.”

Kotek declined OPB’s interview request to discuss House Bill 4002.