3A
THE DAILY ASTORIAN • FRIDAY, JULY 21, 2017
State laws protect against federal pot crackdown
Customer
identification
protected
By PARIS ACHEN
Capital Bureau
PORTLAND — A new
state marijuana law designed
to protect customers from fed-
eral prosecution is already
changing the nature of sales at
dispensaries.
Effective as soon as it was
signed by Gov. Kate Brown in
April, the law prohibits dispen-
saries from recording, retain-
ing or transferring the names
or other identifying informa-
tion of customers who purchase
marijuana.
The regulation is one of sev-
eral new state laws designed
to shield the cannabis industry
from a potential federal crack-
down on the state’s legal market
and to refine overall rules gov-
erning the industry.
“Changes seem to be occur-
ring on a daily if not an hourly
basis on the federal side, and I
personally am very concerned
that we give as much protection
to Oregon citizens to ensure
their personal identification
information isn’t compromised
through some kind of federal
subpoena or some other act that
a business is not going to have
the fortitude or maybe the legal
basis that the state would have
to fight those type of requests,”
said state Sen. Floyd Prozanski,
D-Eugene, a chief sponsor of
the legislation.
The absence of customer
records would hinder authori-
ties from prosecuting customers
for federal marijuana crimes.
However, from a customer
service perspective, the change
brought some disadvantages to
retailers.
“It was nice to be able to
bring up their sales history. We
used to keep track of what prod-
ucts customers bought so if they
forgot what they bought last
time we could pull up a record
of it,” said Alex Richter, man-
ager of Foster Buds’ location on
Northeast Glisan Street in Port-
land. “Now, we’re like a bar or
a convenience store. We just
look at your ID to make sure
you’re over 21.”
U.S. Attorney General Jeff
Sessions has publicly disagreed
with the Obama administra-
tion’s acceptance of state mar-
ijuana programs, which violate
federal law. In May, Sessions
wrote to Congress asking it to
scrap a budget amendment in
effect since 2014 that effec-
tively shields state medical
Paris Achen/Capital Bureau
Kodey Kern, assistant manager at Foster Buds, weighs
some “Alpha Blue” marijuana buds at the company’s loca-
tion at Northeast Glisan Street in Portland Tuesday.
marijuana programs from fed-
eral prosecution.
Sessions’ comments on
marijuana prompted Prozanski
to add an emergency clause to
law, making it effective upon
passage.
Avoiding backlash
Rep. Ann Lininger, D-Lake
Oswego, a lawyer who
co-chairs the Legislature’s Joint
Committee on Marijuana Reg-
ulation, said other new laws
also aim at fortifying the indus-
try against federal backlash.
Senate Bill 1057 allows rec-
reational marijuana retailers to
quickly switch their adult-use
recreational licenses to a medi-
cal-only license in case of “fed-
eral obstacles,” Lininger wrote
in a memo on new cannabis
laws. The law assumed that
Congress would continue the
budget amendment, known as
the Rohrabacher-Farr amend-
ment, to prohibit the federal
government from spending
money to interfere with medi-
cal marijuana programs.
The bill mandates that medi-
cal cannabis producers, proces-
sors, wholesalers and medical
dispensaries undergo the same
stringent seed-to-sale track-
ing of products that the recre-
ational industry has been sub-
ject to since recreational sales
were legalized.
The bill also directs state
regulators to create a database
of anonymized medical mari-
juana transactions to help detect
and prevent diversion of prod-
uct into the illicit market.
An analysis by Oregon State
Police earlier this year showed
product is leaking into the ille-
gal market.
“Anything we can do to cut
off leakage … would put us in a
stronger position” with the fed-
eral government, Sen. Ginny
Burdick, D-Portland, co-chair-
woman of the marijuana regu-
lation committee, said in May.
House Bill 2198 gives the
Oregon Liquor Control Com-
mission additional authority to
respond to applicant or licensee
misconduct. Another new law
allows the liquor control com-
mission to immediately sus-
pend any licensee who has
transferred product into the ille-
gal market. The legislation also
orders the creation of a state
hotline where local authorities
can verify whether a grow site
is registered or licensed.
One of eight
Oregon is one of eight states,
plus the District of Columbia,
that has legalized recreational
adult use of cannabis. Twen-
ty-one other states have legal-
ized medical marijuana.
Despite local efforts to
protect the industry, the fed-
eral government may not need
states’ cooperation to enforce
the federal ban.
The U.S. Department of
Justice could shut down the
marijuana industry through
the federal courts, according to
Mark Kleiman, a professor of
public policy at New York Uni-
versity’s Marron Institute of
Urban Management, when he
was quoted in Business Insider
in February.
The federal government
would only need to obtain cop-
ies of marijuana license appli-
cants and seek an injunction
against the applicants from
selling cannabis, Kleiman has
said.
Such a shutdown would
likely revive Oregon’s ille-
gal market, wipe out 12,500
jobs and drain state coffers of
a projected $105 million in
annual recreational marijuana
tax revenue, used to support
public education and services,
Lininger said.
The Capital Bureau is a col-
laboration between EO Media
Group and Pamplin Media
Group.
Clatsop Post 12
Purple Moon Boutique owner says goodbye
Pot retailer
interested in
Hemlock store
By BRENNA VISSER
The Daily Astorian
CANNON BEACH — The
Purple Moon Boutique has
plans to move out of its loca-
tion on Hemlock Street, with
the possibility of a marijuana
dispensary taking its place.
The women’s clothing store
has been operating at 215 N.
Hemlock Street for 14 years.
Store owner Abbas Atwi said
he put his business up for sale
a couple of months ago and
is moving with his family to
Portland.
“We have been here 14
years, and, like anything in life,
there are pros and cons to living
here,” Atwi said. “I think it is
time for a new venture for us.”
For now, Atwi does not have
a solid closing date in mind, but
he does have three potential
buyers interested in his store.
Two of the parties are inter-
ested in buying the lease with
the intent to keep running it as
Purple Moon Boutique, he said.
The third is Oregrown Indus-
tries, a Bend-based marijuana
dispensary.
The Design Review Board
approved Oregrown’s request
to modify signage, door
color and window display
restrictions.
City Planner Mark Barnes
said he has not received permit
requests from anyone else for
this location.
Brenna Visser/The Daily Astorian
Purple Moon Boutique
owner to sell his shop after
14 years in Cannon Beach.
Atwi said he and the owner
of the building, Gene Cope,
are communicating with all
interested buyers and will
jointly make a decision on
who is awarded the space.
If the dispensary is awarded
the lease, the owners will still
need approval from the Ore-
gon Liquor Control Commis-
sion and a city business license
to open.
Oregrown Industries is
one of three dispensaries that
have submitted land use appli-
cations to the city since the
town voted to approve retail
marijuana within city lim-
its last November. The Port-
land-based, recreational dis-
pensary Five Zero Trees has
plans to move into the former
location of the home goods
store Fruffels at 140 S. Hem-
lock St. within the next cou-
ple of months. One application
will be heard by the Design
Review Board in August about
plans to open a marijuana dis-
pensary at 3115 S. Hemlock
St.
Co-owners Kevin Hogan
and Hunter Neubauer of Ore-
grown Industries said they
wanted to expand their busi-
ness to Cannon Beach because
of its natural beauty, which fits
State hikes individual,
business health premiums
By CLAIRE
WITHYCOMBE
Capital Bureau
SALEM — Oregonians
and small businesses buying
their health insurance on the
individual and small group
markets can generally expect
to see rate increases next year.
The Oregon Department of
Consumer and Business Ser-
vices released its annual rate
decisions Thursday, as uncer-
tainty around health care pol-
icy looms on the state and fed-
eral levels.
On the individual market,
the changes announced Thurs-
day range from an average 1.6
percent dip for BridgeSpan
Health Co. to an average 14.8
percent increase for the Kaiser
Foundation Health Plan of the
Northwest.
For small businesses,
the average changes range
from increases of 3.3 to 10.1
percent.
The state uses a variety of
criteria to make rate decisions,
and multiple factors, including
legal uncertainty surrounding
the fate of the federal Afford-
able Care Act and the escalat-
ing cost of providing insur-
ance, have led to increases in
costs.
But the Department of Con-
sumer and Business Services
says that the rates would be, on
average, 6 percent higher if not
for the reinsurance program
created by the Legislature this
year, which it says “will add
additional stability and pre-
dictability in the market.”
in with the company’s Oregon
outdoors, lifestyle brand.
“Cannon Beach is such an
iconic Oregon destination,”
Neubauer said.
The two started their flag-
ship store in Bend 3 1/2 years
ago. Hogan said their No. 1
priority is to go through all
proper channels and to make
sure, if the store is approved, it
will fit in with the aesthetic and
the culture of the town.
“We like to do things
the right way,” Hogan
said. “That’s what made us
successful.”
Until the decision is made,
Atwi said to expect business as
usual.
“We’re still Purple Moon
until otherwise,” Atwi said.
“I’m not opening another Pur-
ple Moon for sure, but I hav-
en’t decided what my new
venture will be.”
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N orth w es t H a rdw oods • Lon gview , W A
Contact: John Anderson • 360-269-2500
Saturday , July 22 nd
91
st Birthday of the
Doughboy Monument
“Doughboy Over the Top at Cantigny”
on
Presented to the City of Astoria
by Clatsop Post 12, The American Legion
July 21, 1926
3 PM: “World
ERA Movie
War I”
4 PM: Reception/Dinner/Birthday Cake
at Clatsop Post 12
Program to include:
• Displays on Post 12 and Cantigny, France
• Memorial of the Fallen in The Great War
• Charter Members of Clatsop Post 12 and others that
served
• Presentation of rendering of possible Memorial
Monument at “Doughboy Monument”
American Legion | Clatsop Post 12
1132 Exchange Street
All is open to the Public
Volunteer
Pick of the Week
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72 nd
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By
B AYSHORE
A NIMAL H OSPITAL
C LATSOP C OUNTY A NIMAL S HELTER
1315 SE 19 th Street, Warrenton • 861 - PETS
www.dogsncats.org
Noon to 4pm, Tues-Sat
J uly 29 & 30, 2017
1:00 p.m.
Family night starts Saturday after Rodeo
“Featuring free fun events for kids up to 12 years”
Friday, July 28th 6:30 pm • Rodeo Parade Downtown Long Beach
Latigo & Lace Drill Team • Beer Garden • Vendors • Concessions
clatsop
care
Admission: PRES ALE Adults $9.50 Seniors $8.50 Children (6-12 yrs.) $4.50 * Peninsula Pharmacy
Adults $10.00 Seniors $9.00 Children (6-12yrs.) $5.00 Children 5 & under FREE
FU N D R A I S E R
SUGGESTED DONATION $5
SATURDAY JULY 22 ND
10AM-3PM
Clatsop Care parking lot 646 16th Street, Astoria
COWBOY BREAKFAST
Sat. & Sun. 7a.m. til 11 a.m .
6407 Sandridge Road • Info 1-800-451-2542
LONG BEACH, WASHINGTON
ASTOR STREET OPRY COMPANY
We thank our Coast Guard for graciously
offering to assist us with the fundraiser!
$3
H O T D O G,
CHIPS &
DRINK
100% of funds
raised or
donated
will be used
to repair
our bus
33rd Season of
S hanghaied in A storia
July 7 - September 9
Thursday through Saturday: 7pm
Sunday Matinees: 2pm
Aug. 6 & Sept. 9
Tickets on Sale ONE HOUR before all shows
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For tickets, visit our website
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