3A THE DAILY ASTORIAN • TUESDAY, DECEMBER 15, 2015 State lawmakers want talks to begin for 2017 transportation bill By HILLARY BORRUD Capital Bureau PORTLAND — State lawmakers said on Monday that they need to begin ne- gotiations now if they are going to pass legislation to fund transportation in 2017. The lawmakers — state Sen. Betsy Johnson, D-Scappoose; Rep. John Davis, R-Wilsonville; Rep Cliff Bentz, R-Ontario; and Rep. Caddy McKeown, D-Coos Bay — were on a panel at the Oregon Busi- ness Plan Leadership Sum- mit in Portland. The four lawmakers were all part of a bipartisan group dubbed the “Gang of Eight” who met with Gov. Kate Brown during the legisla- tive session to hammer out a transportation funding pro- posal. Lawmakers and the governor scrapped the pro- posal in June after Oregon Department of Transporta- tion director Matthew Gar- rett revealed during a pub- lic hearing on the plan that it would result in a smaller carbon emissions reduction than originally projected. Brown also said on Mon- day that she based her de- cision to defer action on a transportation package in part on the plan by the pe- troleum and trucking indus- tries to seek a 2016 ballot measure to repeal the state’s low-carbon fuel standard. On Monday, the lawmak- ers said the short timeline this year made it dif¿cult to negotiate a proposal with broad support, and one of the lessons was to set aside more time to develop the next plan. Davis said he was dis- couraged to hear people suggest the Legislature wait until 2017 to negotiate a transportation funding pack- age. “I think the ¿rst thing is, we start,” Davis said. Davis, whose suburban constituents deal with traf- ¿c congestion during their commutes, said law- makers need to start put- ting for- ward straw proposals, State Sen. so that v a r i o u s Betsy Johnson interests have time to debate the pros and cons. McKeown also said the Legislature needs to in- vest time in negotiating a transportation package. “I think we’re going to need that year to be able to bring something together that would be palatable to our constituents,” McKeown said. Johnson said that in or- der to produce successful transportation funding bills, the state must continue to include representatives from around the state. “It was in that spir- it of collaboration that we worked pretty diligently,” Johnson said. “Time was not our friend and we eventual- ly ran out of time ... It was collegial, it was cooperative. We were there as Orego- nians.” “I think it’s time for all of us to get back in the room” and start negotiating, said Johnson, whose constituents are currently dealing with storm damage to the trans- portation system. Bentz said a key goal for lawmakers is to craft a pro- posal that has broad support and a minimal chance of being referred to the ballot. “That takes time,” Bentz said. Bentz is trying to line up funding to repair the route to a diatomaceous earth mine in his district that, together with the processing plant, employees more than 100 people. The Capital Bureau is a collaboration between EO Media Group and Pamplin Media Group. City of Cannon Beach still mulling dispensary decision It could be months before a marijuana dispensary vote ‘It seems to me that would be a waste of time and money and is kind of like saying, ‘You made a bad decision, now we’ll give you a chance to correct it.’ ‘ George Vetter By DANI PALMER EO Media Group CANNON BEACH — City councilors indicated they are likely to draft time, place and manner restrictions for marijuana sales, but they are not ready for a decision yet. Despite the success of Measure 91 allowing recre- ational sale and possession of small amounts of marijua- na — approved by 63 per- cent of Cannon Beach voters in November 2014 — the city only licenses businesses which abide by local, state and federal law, which ex- cludes cannabis. Failure to enact licensing rules could put the city at risk of litigation, City Attor- ney Tammy Herdener said. Other municipalities have been sued over similar inac- tion, she said. Councilor Mike Bene- field said he leaned toward giving residents the chance to opt out of marijuana sales through a ballot measure next November. He said the result might differ from 2014. “Maybe the reason the vote was so high wasn’t that they wanted to have a dis- pensary or a store or a crop,” Benefield said. Proponents “just wanted to be able to go to Seaside and get a joint and not get arrested for it.” Councilor George Vetter said it doesn’t “make sense to go back to the voters.” “It seems to me that would be a waste of time and money and is kind of like saying, ‘You made a bad decision, now we’ll give you a chance to correct it,’” Vet- ter said. Cannon Beach city councilor, on opt-out vote He noted a marijuana business would not survive in Cannon Beach without demand. Opposition to licensing Marlene Laws, a resident, voiced her opposition to li- censing dispensaries. Cannon Beach is a beau- tiful area known for being family and dog friendly, Laws said, and secondhand marijuana smoke causes ill- ness in children and pets. She cited risks to children and studies indicating in- creased accident rates asso- ciated with marijuana use. She also expressed concern over the security of marijua- na shops. “We need to preserve the image of Cannon Beach,” Laws said, adding Seaside, with two dispensaries, is a short drive away. Steve Hudgik, a retired marketing specialist and pastor of the Cannon Beach Bible Church, said numbers in Colorado and other states indicating an uptick in tour- ism following marijuana le- galization were misleading. Hudgik questioned if marijuana would enhance “the Cannon Beach experi- ence” and noted it is import- ant not to rush a decision be- cause “once it’s here, you’re not going to get rid of it.” Support for marijuana Sam Chapman, founding partner of New Economy Consulting, said he wants to open a marijuana shop with family members as employ- ees. He said he chose Can- Clatsop Community College changed this Warrenton woman’s life non Beach because of its at- mosphere. Chapman said he wants to address the stigma of mari- juana and believes a dispen- sary could bring in addition- al tourism with an “emerging cannabis industry.” He said he is looking at potential dispensary loca- tions and one business owner has already given approval. Now, Chapman said, it is up to the city to make a de- cision. Resident Jan Sie- bert-Wahrmund said mari- juana is actually not that dif- ferent from alcohol. “I don’t use it myself, I don’t drink alcohol, but I think people have the right to do so,” Sie- bert-Wahrmund added, point- ing to Cannon Beach’s voter approval of Measure 91. person in public, but may not consume it in public places such as hotels, the beach or on the street, Herdener said. Herdener said the city could impose its own “rea- sonable restrictions,” like dispensary hours, distance from parks and more in drafting a licensing ordi- nance. Mayor Sam Steidel ques- tioned whether the school run by the Christian Con- ference Center would be included in that 1,000-foot buffer area around dispensa- ries. If it is, he added, there would be few lots available meeting those criteria. Herdener said the buffer requirement does not ap- ply to preschools and Bible schools. She said staff are seeking guidance because it will take work to prepare a ballot measure. Even if the council de- cides to go with the No- vember 2016 vote, Herden- er added, staff will have to draft regulations in case res- idents don’t opt out. City Planner Mark Barnes said it would take four months to go through the adoption process, so the city would need to come to a decision next spring. An opt-out of marijuana sales would prevent Cannon Beach from receiving state taxes on sales, he added. The rules The Oregon Liquor Con- trol Commission is in the process of adopting rules for recreational cannabis use due in January. “This is really a moving animal,” Herdener said. There are already limita- tions in place. Dispensaries must be located more than 1,000 feet from schools. Or- egon residents are allowed to grow up to four plants for personal use without a license and may carry an ounce of marijuana on their W A NTED Alder and Maple Saw Logs & Standing Timber N orth w es t H a rdw oods • Lon gview , W A Contact: Steve Axtell • 360-430-0885 or John Anderson • 360-269-2500 C olum bia M em orial H ospital 2111 E xch ange St., A storia (503) 325-4321 www.colum biam em orial.org Fo r a $10 d o n a tio n , w e w ill pla ce a ha n d m a d e hea rt o rn a m en t o n a tree in m em o ry o r ho n o r o f the perso n yo u cho o se. In Memory of In Honor of Name on ornament: Send acknowledgment to: Name and address 1. 2. 3. 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