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1. Once every 39 minutes someone is arrested or cited for marijuana in Oregon.

2. Current marijuana laws unfairly target people of color in Oregon. African-Americans are 2.1-times more likely than whites to be arrested for marijuana possession, despite no difference in levels of use among the races

3. 1 out of every 14 arrests for any crime in Oregon were for marijuana possession, a rate that far exceeds Washington and California.

4. In Washington, arrests for minor marijuana offenses dropped from 5,531 in 2012, to 120 in 2013, the year regulation took effect.

5. Oregon spent over $50 million enforcing marijuana possession laws in 2010.

6. Tax revenue for Oregon, from legal regulated marijuana, is projected to be between $46 million & $80 million in the first biennium.

7. Marijuana tax revenue will go to school funding (40%), drug treatment, prevention, and mental health programs (25%), and state and local police (35%).

8. It is estimated that the black market cartel losses will be $1.84 Billion between Washington and Oregon, if Measure 91 passes.

9. After Measure 91 passes, police will be able to focus on more serious crimes. Right now, Oregon has unsolved murders, untested rape kits, missing children, and more.

10. The Oregonian says we “should support outright legalization.”

11. Colorado’s Rollout of Legal Marijuana Is Succeeding according to the Brookings Institution

12. Revenue is up in Washington state.

13. The Register-Guard agrees that “prohibition keeps drug dealers in business — dealers who have no compunction against selling pot and other drugs to children, selling products of dubious purity and feeding profits to organized criminal enterprises.”

14. King County Sheriff John Urquhart says in Washington “our new approach is working.”

15. 30 experienced law enforcement officials are backing Measure 91.

16. The East Oregonian says “The opportunity to incorporate a policy that is similar — but better — than those in Colorado and Washington will be in front of voters in November… we support the passage of Measure 91.”

17. More than half of all drug arrests made in Oregon are for marijuana offenses 58.6% marijuana – 41.1% all other harder drugs.

18. Criminalizing marijuana is more destructive than using it: criminal sanctions split families, take jobs, ruin homes, cost taxpayers too much money and put people in jail, where they learn how to commit dangerous crimes.

19. Marijuana will be harder for minors to access. Police sting operations in Colorado found zero stores willing to sell to minors.

20. 90% of marijuana possession incidents involve less than 1 ounce of marijuana

21. 7.06% of arrests in Oregon for any crime were for marijuana possession, a rate that far exceeds Washington and California

22. The number of marijuana possession arrests in Oregon has more than doubled since 1991

23. Travel guru Rick Steves urges you to vote yes on 91 because he has seen other countries succeed in controlling marijuana by taking the “crime out of the equation.”

24. Currently $0 in state money is available for drug prevention programs. Measure 91 provides tax revenue for drug education and addiction programs.

25. The Medford Mail-Tribune says Oregonians should vote Yes on Measure.

26. The New York Times, which has never endorsed a state-level marijuana measure, urges a yes vote on Measure 91.

27. Nurses support Measure 91 because research can be done on medical marijuana to determine the parameters of its medicinal use.

28. Teachers and School Volunteers support Measure 91.

29. A Portland grandmother supports Measure 91 because our current system isn’t working and we need to replace it with one that does.

30. According to Dr. Richard Bayer, M.D., FACP regulation works better than marijuana prohibition.

31. After regulation only adults over 21 will be able to purchase marijuana.

32. Measure 91 means adults over 21 will only be able to buy marijuana from licensed businesses selling a product that has been tested and approved.

33. Oregon farmers will be able to grow hemp, a fibrous plant that can be turned into oil, wax, rope, resin, cloth, paper, pulp and food, AND that isn’t used for smoking.

34. Oregonians will be able to capitalize on the half a billion dollars Canadians make a year on hemp. (About 90% of the hemp they grow is exported to the United States.)

35. Oregon & the United States will be able to catch up to Canada, which has 20-year lead on hemp research.

36. Pushing illegal cartel growers out of business will keep wildland firefighters and hikers from accidentally being hurt by boobytraps or armed cartel guards.

37. Illegal marijuana operations hurt the environment by growing on public lands, in national and state parks, or in wilderness areas – far from where they believe they’ll be caught. Growing large plots of marijuana, or any crop, in fragile natural areas is damaging to habitat and to the local ecosystem.

38. Some grows operate on private land, like this one in in Linn County, putting employees of private companies at risk of coming across these dangerous people.

39. Firefighters and EMTs are voting yes.

40. The unmonitored fertilization and pesticide use at illegal marijuana grows can create contaminated run-off that poisons local water sources.

41. Indoor marijuana growing can require significant amounts of electricity for lighting.

42. Indoor illegal growers don’t have access to energy conservation techniques or equipment.

43. Illegal indoor growers won’t go ask for help with solar panels, power-saving equipment, and have no incentive to do so, and they waste our energy supply in the process.

44. Measure 91 is endorsed by the ORegon League of Conservation Voters

45. If Measure 91 passes, marijuana will only be grown by licensed, regulated, inspected and audited growers who won’t need to hide in the wilderness and continue illegal growing that hurts our natural areas.

46. We can drastically reduce the number of marijuana arrests and citations made by police, and shift police and sheriff’s efforts to cracking down on illegal growing operations that should be licensed and regulated.

47. For those with a license to legally grow marijuana, energy audits and conservation measures can be required by state regulators.

48. Incentives can be provided for better use of natural resources for powering marijuana as a crop.

49. Senator Jeff Merkley, the first US Senator to support legalization of marijuana, plans to vote YES on Measure 91.

50. It will be harder for kids to get access to marijuana, in the current system drug dealers don’t ask for ID, under Measure 91, licensed sellers will only sell to adults over 21..

51. Right now, illegal drug dealers sell marijuana and they don’t ask for ID.

52. Measure 91 will create a regulated market where edibles are in childproof containers and only sold in licensed stores to adults over 21.

53. Measure 91 allows for honest dialogue about the uses and potential uses for marijuana.

54. Right now, not enough children receive guidance in school about not using marijuana, after Measure 91 passes there will be prevention programs and materials will be funded for schools, families and community groups.

55. Oregon will be a leader in moving forward antiquated marijuana policy across the nation.

56. Measure 91 will lower arrest and citation rates in Oregon, Oregon police arrest and cite 13,000 people per year.

57. Darian Stanford, Former Assistant District Attorney, Multnomah County District Attorney’s Office Drug Unit, is voting Yes.

58. In Colorado and Washington by taxing a product people were already using, much like beer and wine, programs like schools, drug prevention and more are receiving much-needed additional funding.

59. Fewer people will have their lives ruined by arrests and citations for small amounts of marijuana, improving their chances of getting housing, loans and jobs.

60. Cartels will be hobbled if Measure 91 passes, they will have to compete with a legitimate market and quickly lose their footing in the United States.

61. After Measure 91 passes, police will be able to focus on more serious crimes.

62. Rick Steves can explain it in 45 seconds.

63. It takes at least 10 minutes to arrest or cite someone for marijuana. That’s two years straight of police time spent over the last decade.

64. People of color are 100% more likely to be arrested for marijuana despite little difference in rate of use.

65. The Skanner has endorsed Measure 91 saying that “the so-called War on Drugs has failed to stem [marijuana use] and has filled our jails and prisons with low-level offenders – all at taxpayer expense – this measure might be the best chance we have to restore some sanity to the system. Legalize it, regulate it like alcohol, and create a new revenue stream for the state. We vote YES.”

66. In Colorado and Washington arrests are down for minor marijuana violations that waste millions of dollars, allowing the state to focus their police and resources on preventing serious, violent crimes.

67. In Colorado and Washington state regulated, secure dispensaries are putting drug dealers out of business leading to a drop in teen use and access, and adult use has not increased.

68. Measure 91 will retain the current medical marijuana program.

69. Inge Fryklund, Retired Prosecutor & Military Advisor from Bend, Oregon supports Measure 91

70. Richard Harris, Former Director of Oregon Addiction and Mental Health Services is voting Yes on 91

71. Pete Tutmark, Retired Oregon Police Officer is voting Yes on 91

72. Susan Kelly, a mother from Coburg, Oregon is voting Yes on Measure 91

73. Judge Richard W. Riggs, Retired Oregon Supreme Court Justice, is voting yes on 91

74. Tara Sulzen, Conservation Leader and Executive Director at The Bus Project is voting Yes on 91

75. Reverend Dave Bean, Retired United Methodist Minister is voting Yes on 91

76. Kris Olson, Former Chief Federal Prosecutor for Oregon is voting Yes on 91

77. Because hundreds of Oregonians have added their names to the Wall of Support and are Voting Yes on 91

78. In Colorado and Washington traffic fatalities are down in both states; a regulated, legal system of marijuana has not caused more traffic deaths in either state.

79. City Club of Portland said “the social costs of the current system are too high [and that] crime can be reduced through regulated legalization.”

80. It’s the first time senior organizations have endorsed a marijuana measure in Oregon: the Oregon State Council for Retired Citizens and Oregon Alliance for Retired Americans urge yes votes.

81. Labor organizations support Measure 91:United Food and Commercial Workers Local 555, AFSCME Local 328, and AFSCME Local 88 are all urging a YES vote on Measure 91.

82. The Corvallis Gazette-Times says “Oregon would be well-served by the passage of Measure 91, which would allow the regulated cultivation, sale and possession of marijuana for recreational use by adults 21 and older.”

83. ACLU Oregon says that “Legalizing, regulating and taxing the recreational use of marijuana by adults 21 and older will bring a new approach to our drug laws, making them more fair, more compassionate, and smarter at reducing drug dependency and improving public health and safety. We urge a YES vote.”

84. National Association of Social Workers, Oregon Chapter says “[we] strongly supports Measure 91’s public health approach to marijuana regulation.”

85. The Oregon Criminal Defense Lawyers Association and Law Enforcement Against Prohibition support Measure 91.

86. The Partnership for Safety and Justice said, “No one should go to jail for marijuana. Too many people have been punished, and too many of them have been youth and people of color.” And are urging a YES vote no Measure 91.

87. In Colorado monthly revenues for marijuana taxes, licenses and fees continue to increase each month.

88. OPAL Environmental Justice Oregon stated, “Decades of marijuana criminalization have harmed communities across the country, as well as here in Oregon. Measure 91 will restore a moral, rational and just approach to social norms.”

89. Asian Pacific American Network of Oregon (APANO), The Rural Organizing Project and the Western States Center urge you to VOTE YES.

90. Treating marijuana use as a crime has failed.

91. Measure 91 is the better approach.

With only six days left before ballots are due, 30 law enforcement officials from across the western half of the United States have endorsed Oregon’s Measure 91 to regulate marijuana.

The endorsers include former Seattle police chief Norm Stamper, former Multnomah County Sheriff Don Clark, former Denver Police Department Lieutenant Tony Ryan and Los Angeles Police Department Deputy Chief Stephen Downing.

The Yes on 91 campaign announced their support as part of a press conference today featuring former U.S. Attorney Kris Olson; former Oregon Supreme Court Justice Bill Riggs; 30-year law enforcement veteran Paul Steigleder; and Partnership for Safety and Justice director Cassandra Villanueva.

“Marijuana prohibition has a disproportionate and disparate impact on people of color and youth — fueling their existence and penetration in the criminal and justice systems,” Villanueva said. “It is not an effective use of taxpayer dollars or reflect the value of Oregonians.”

People of color in Oregon are arrested twice as often for marijuana despite no evidence of disparity in use, according to an ACLU analysis of FBI crime data. Seven percent of all arrests for any crime in Oregon are for simple marijuana possession, according to The Oregonian.

New advertisements have hit the television and radio airwaves for Measure 91, featuring Oregon’s former chief federal prosecutor Kris Olson, retired Oregon Supreme Court Justice Bill Riggs, former Multnomah County drug unit prosecutor Darian Stanford, former prosecutor Inge Fryklund and others.

WHY DO NURSES LIKE RACHEL URGE A YES VOTE FOR MEASURE 91? Because research is urgently needed for medical marijuana, schools need drug education, and drug prevention and treatment needs funding.

As a nurse I have firsthand experience with how people use marijuana. There is no question the current approach of treating it as a crime has failed. With Measure 91, Oregon has a better way forward. The problems I see with the current approach are solved by Measure 91.

PROBLEM 1: Medical marijuana transforms lives, but almost no research can be done on it. For patients with diseases like multiple sclerosis or cancer, medical marijuana can be the difference between a decent and unbearable life. But because marijuana is illegal, there’s no effective system for labeling, testing and dosing. Medical studies are nearly impossible to conduct. Patients and doctors must rely on guesswork.

SOLUTION: Make marijuana legal so that research can be done and doctors and medical patients can get basic information.

PROBLEM 2: Kids and schools need drug education, not drug dealers. Right now, illegal marijuana is widely available and people who buy marijuana are funding drug cartels and criminal market dealers. These dealers sell marijuana to young people, making it too easy for kids to get. And they are the ones who “educate” kids about marijuana.

SOLUTION: Take marijuana off the streets and put it behind a counter. So money no longer goes drug dealers and cartels.

PROBLEM 3: Marijuana prevention programs are woefully underfunded or nonexistent in ORegon.

SOLUTION: Tax marijuana sold by legitimate businesses so money goes to marijuana prevention and drug treatment programs. Kids are more likely to say no to marijuana when they get proven drug education, With tobacco, regulation, taxation and education has been effective in reducing use, and stopping teens from starting.

By Rachel Seidelman, Registered Nurse – Portland

1. Once every 39 minutes someone is arrested or cited for marijuana in Oregon.Current drug laws unfairly target people of color in Oregon.

2. Blacks are 2.1 times more likely than whites to be arrested for marijuana possession.

3. 1 out of every 14 arrests in Oregon were for marijuana possession.

4. In Washington marijuana-related arrests dropped from 5,500 in 2012, to 120 in 2013, the year regulation took effect.

5. Oregon spent $50,194,024 enforcing marijuana possession laws in 2010.

6. Tax revenue for Oregon is projected to be between $46 million & $80 million in the first biennium.

7. Tax revenue that will go to school funding (40%), drug treatment, prevention, and mental health programs (25%), and state and local police (35%).

8. It is estimated that the black market cartel losses will be $1.84 Billion if Measure 91 passes.

9. After Measure 91 passes, police will be able to focus on more serious crimes. Right now, Oregon has unsolved murders, untested rape kits, missing children, and more.