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A3 THE ASTORIAN • THURSDAY, AUGUST 29, 2019 Washington considers overhaul of pot regulation Five years after legalization By GENE JOHNSON Associated Press SEATTLE — Five years after Washington state launched its pioneering legal marijuana market, offi cials are proposing an overhaul of the state’s industry rules, with plans for boosting minority ownership of pot businesses, paving the way for home deliveries of medical can- nabis and letting the small- est growers increase the size of their operations to become more competitive. Liquor and Cannabis Board Director Rick Garza detailed the proposals — part of what the board calls “Can- nabis 2.0” — in an interview with The Associated Press. It’s an effort to picture what the legal marijuana market will look like over the next fi ve years, after spending the past fi ve years largely regu- lating by reaction as the dif- fi culties of building an indus- try from infancy absorbed the agency’s attention. “We’ve typically been so challenged with the issues of the day we haven’t been look- ing out long term to deter- mine what the future looks like,” Garza said. The board has been free- ing up its bandwidth by coor- dinating with other agencies to share the responsibility of regulating the market, such as having the Department of Ecology oversee the certifi ca- tion of marijuana testing labs and the Department of Finan- cial Institutions examine the sometimes complicated own- ership structures of licensed cannabis businesses. Elaine Thompson/AP Photo Cannabis consultant Juan Aguilar, left, assists customers Bill, right, and Nize Nylen and their son, Russell, shop for edible marijuana products in the Herban Legends pot shop in Seattle last year. One big-picture issue the board could rethink is whether to abandon the state’s seed-to-sale marijuana tracking program, which has long been beset by software issues, sometimes grinding business to a halt, in favor of a system where businesses report their transactions to the board and are then audited. Another is whether to prepare to allow marijuana exports, as Oregon did this year, in the event the federal government approves it. New legislation For the next session of the Legislature, the board has proposed two bills. One would create what some crit- ics describe as a long-over- due “social equity” program, encouraging greater owner- ship of marijuana businesses by minorities, women and military veterans. Part of the rationale of legalizing mari- juana in Washington state in 2012 was to remedy the dis- proportionate effect the drug war has had on people of color, but minority ownership of cannabis businesses in the state remains paltry. While Washington is not currently issuing any more marijuana licenses, 11 of the more than 500 retailers have surrendered their licenses, Garza said. Under the board’s proposal, those could be reis- sued, or, if cities or counties agree to increase the num- ber of pot shops within their boundaries, new licenses could be granted — this time, to participants in the social equity program. Businesses would be eli- gible if they are owned by a woman, minority or veteran, or if a majority of its own- ership group are members of a “protected class” under state anti-discrimination law. Applicants would be barred from consideration if any owner already has a major- ity share of another cannabis retail license. The legislation would also create a technical assistance program run by the Depart- ment of Commerce that would provide grants total- ing at least $100,000 per year to help minority-, woman- or veteran-owned businesses navigate the licensing pro- cess, receive compliance and fi nancial training, and buy equipment, software or facilities. The Washington CannaB- usiness Association, an indus- try group, said it agrees there is a need for a social equity program, and it’s been work- ing on its own version. “We think there’s an opportunity to go even beyond” what the board is proposing, said spokesman Aaron Pickus. Another legislative pro- Scrutiny could ease on public forest projects By JES BURNS Oregon Public Broadcasting The U.S. Forest Service is proposing to reduce the pub- lic’s role in shaping the way it applies federal environ- mental laws to projects on public lands. The agency says the changes would help land managers “make timelier decisions based on high qual- ity, science-based analysis.” Environmental groups are calling the proposed changes a giveaway to the timber industry that will allow proj- ects on national forests to be approved with far less involvement from the public. The changes concern how the Forest Service operates under the National Environ- mental Policy Act , the law Jes Burns/Oregon Public Broadcasting Thinning, mowing and prescribed fi re are used in Ponderosa pine forests to maintain an open forest fl oor. that provides much of the framework for environmen- tal protection in the United States. Under the law, proj- ects on public lands have to go through various lev- els of environmental anal- ysis to ensure that detri- mental impacts are not too great. These environmen- tal analyses can take months or even years to complete and include various levels of public involvement and feedback. Critics of how the For- est Service currently applies NEPA say the process is way too cumbersome, slows proj- ects and permit applications down too much, and has led to backlogs in needed natural resource management. “The paperwork exercise that they have to go through just don’t match the scope and scale of the problem,” said Travis Joseph, president of the Portland-based Amer- ican Forest Resource Coun- cil, a timber industry trade association. The proposed changes are being framed in terms of reducing the backlog of forest restoration and wild- fi re mitigation projects by streamlining the NEPA pro- cess. The Forest Service says the backlog is 80 million acres. posal would allow strug- gling tier-one producers — the smallest size, limited to 2,000 square feet of plants — to sell medical-grade product directly to the state’s 36,000 registered marijuana patients. The patients have long com- plained that they have a hard time fi nding medical-grade cannabis, which must go through additional testing for pesticides and heavy met- als, in retail stores, and Garza said the proposal could help the patients while giving the growers an incentive to offer more medically compliant product. The tier-one growers could sell to patients onsite, with other growers at indoor farm- ers-market-style locations, or by delivery, Garza said. Local jurisdictions would have to approve, and to avoid com- petition with other licensed retailers, the growers or farm- ers markets would have to be at least 3 miles away from established retailers. Any proposal to allow delivery or sales by small growers is certain to be con- troversial, as other retailers might object to additional competition. Garza said the board will consider industry feedback. “There’s going to be real concerns by retailers out PROFESSIONAL Q: I would like a screen saver of my favorite pictures. LEO FINZI Q: What are my options for replacing a missing tooth? options exist to address A: Many this situation. Factors which JEFFREY M. LEINASSAR DMD, FAGD addition to mechanical cir- culatory support devices and many other options for advanced heart failure,” said John Hunter, OHSU chief executive offi cer, in a statement. Earlier this year, a second hospital system in Oregon, Providence Health & Ser- vices, received a $75 mil- lion dollar gift from Nike co-founder Phil Knight and his wife, Penny Knight, to start a new heart program. 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Q: Do I need to wait for Fire & Smoke Damage The organization that oversees organ transplants in the United States has approved an application from Oregon Health & Sci- ence University to resume heart transplants. OHSU stopped perform- ing the procedure last year after four cardiologists left abruptly. A study by heart trans- plant experts from around the globe, commissioned by OHSU, found that work- load, personality clashes, burnout and an overall lack of support from the health system led to the depart- ment’s implosion. But now OHSU admin- istrators say they have suc- cessfully recruited three car- diologists and will resume heart transplant work. They’re from the Univer- sity of California, San Fran- cisco, Brigham and Wom- en’s Hospital in Boston and University of Vermont Medical Center. “OHSU’s h eart t rans- plant p rogram has a long history of serving the state of Oregon, providing more than 700 heart transplant procedures to date,” said OHSU President Danny Jacobs in a statement. “With the successful recruitment of cardiologists from some of the preeminent pro- grams in the country, we are pleased to resume the full spectrum of care for Orego- nians with advanced heart failure, in need of heart transplantation.” The university faced a tough deadline: If it didn’t reopen the unit by Septem- ber, the teaching hospital would need to be re certi- fi ed by the United Network for Organ Sharing — mean- ing the fi rst 10 transplants would be performed at uni- versity expense. “We are thrilled with our progress toward building the right team and receiving the appropriate approvals to provide heart transplants, in DENTAL EXCELLENCE Water & Mold Damage By KRISTIAN FODEN-VENCIL Oregon Public Broadcasting MEATLOAF DINNER Go to your pictures A: 1. folder, right click and select “New Folder” and label it Slide Show 1 (SS1). 2. 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Though they must make similar investments in security, insurance and prod- uct tracking as the largest growers, they are allowed to grow and sell only tiny frac- tion of what the largest grow- ers produce. Paige Berger, CEO of Hygge Farms in Onalaska, said she’s excited about the board’s proposal. She ini- tially obtained a tier-one license because she didn’t have enough money to invest in a larger operation. Now, she said, she’s hamstrung by her limited size: She can only produce enough marijuana to have product in 10 licensed cannabis shops. “I can’t get out there and expand my brand to what I think it could do,” Berger said. Consult a L E I NA S S A R Clatsop Post 12 there,” he said. “If we’re going to do that, we’ve got to be cautious.” CLASSIFIED DEADLINES: Tuesday edition: NOON, FRIDAY, AUGUST 30 TH 971-704-1716 www.dailyastorian.com 949 Exchange St. Astoria, OR 503-325-3211 business and inform readers about the types of services you provide. 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