From the Desk of Representative Tracy Cramer

As we enter into a campaign year, voters are going to have a big opportunity to address the most pressing issues impacting them and their families. As I have been traveling around the district talking to workers, families, business owners, and local leaders, the concern over public safety has stuck out like a sore thumb.

When people talk about public safety, homelessness and drug use are often in the middle of the conversation. We’ve all seen, if not personally experienced, the heartbreaking crisis unfolding on Oregon streets. 

Earlier this year, the Legislature passed HB 4002, which reversed the most damaging parts of Measure 110’s drug decriminalization. I would have preferred – and did vote for – a much stronger version, but it was a good step in the right direction. Without public pressure and Republicans holding firm with District Attorneys, Sheriffs, and police agencies from around the state, Democrats would have passed a far less effective bill than we ended up passing. 

The bill recognizes police and prosecutors have a role to play in disrupting the supply of dangerous drugs and protecting communities and people suffering from addiction.

There are four main pieces to this bill:

Make it easier to prosecute drug dealers: HB 4002 will reverse court rulings that have made it more difficult for district attorneys to prosecute drug dealers.

Enhanced penalties for dealers: HB 4002 will create stiff penalties for dealers who sell near parks, treatment facilities, and homeless shelters.

Recriminalizes drug possession: Possession of a controlled substance will now be an Unclassified Misdemeanor that carries up to 180 days in jail if a defendant fails a diversion program.

Creates voluntary county-level deflection programs: The legislation provides funding for local communities to build deflection plans that allow officers and prosecutors to divert people who would otherwise be charged with drug possession toward pre-booking diversion programs when appropriate.

Here’s what that means in practice:

A police officer arrests someone for using drugs. The officer or district attorney is encouraged to refer the person to a deflection program – think of a deflection program as a treatment program. There are few details about how deflection programs will look right now and will vary from county to county.

If they complete the deflection program, their arrest records will be expunged and spend no time in jail. If they fail the deflection program, they are given another chance to avoid jail via a conditional discharge diversion, which is 12 months of supervised probation. If they fail conditional discharge diversion, they will get convicted of a Unclassified Misdemeanor with probation. If they fail probation, probation is revoked, and they get up to 180 days in jail.

Essentially, drug users get three opportunities to avoid jail. 

Notably, there are several things that were not in the bill that I wish were:

• It doesn’t fully repeal Measure 110.
• It doesn’t make sobriety a goal of our drug policy and doesn’t track how many people we help get off drugs.
• It doesn’t remove “harm reduction” (clean needles, etc) as a core measurement of success.

I recently met with Marion County Commissioners to discuss their plans and progress on using the new tools in HB 4002. The bill will give power back to counties, district attorneys and law enforcement, especially regarding deflection programs and what probation will look like. I am optimistic that the Marion County Commission will do good work in balancing compassion and accountability for those struggling with addiction.

The law will finally go into effect in September, so I look forward to working with local leaders and other state legislators to ensure this new law effectively gets people off drugs and cleans up our streets. As always, I welcome your feedback and input. It helps me better represent our community. Email me at Rep.TracyCramer@oregonlegislature.gov or call my office at 503-986-1422.