OFF PAGE ONE
MARIJUANA: Oregon passed several laws earlier
this year aimed at preventing product leakage
Page 8A
East Oregonian
Continued from 1A
Sessions wrote almost
identical letters to the
governors of Washington
and Colorado, according to a
report by Slate Monday, Aug.
7. Oregon, Washington and
Colorado represent only three
of the eight states that have
legalized pot for recreational
use, raising the question
whether the federal govern-
ment plans to prioritize its
resources toward cracking
down on the industry in those
three states.
Only about 30 percent of
marijuana market activity in
Oregon complies with state
regulation, according the
OSP report.
“There is ‘pervasive illicit
cannabis cultivation in the
state … (and) a strong indi-
cation that surplus cannabis
is not discarded, but is in
fact traffi cked out-of-state
and sold for a huge profi t
margin,’” Sessions wrote,
quoting the report.
The cost and rate of burn
victims from marijuana oil
extraction labs and marijua-
na-related emergency room
visits have spiked since
legalization, he stated.
Meanwhile,
under-age
users represent a majority
of cannabis impairment
cases on Oregon roadways,
according to drug recognition
data from 2013 to 2015, he
wrote.
About 63 percent of
Oregon adults don’t know
whether it’s legal to drive
after using pot, he added.
A federal task force
convened to devise a legal
strategy to enforce the federal
ban on cannabis concluded
that DOJ should continue
the policy of the Obama
administration,
according
to an Aug. 3 report by The
Associated Press.
The Oregon Legislature
earlier this year passed several
laws aimed at preventing
product leakage into the
illegal market and fortifying
the industry against federal
backlash. For instance, one
new law requires medical
cannabis producers undergo
the same stringent seed-to-
sale tracking of products that
the recreational industry has
been subject to since legal
recreational sales began in
2015. Another law orders
the creation of a state hotline
where authorities can verify
whether a grow site is regis-
tered or licensed with the
local and state government.
“Anything we can do to
cut off leakage … would put
us in a stronger position” with
the federal government, Sen.
Ginny Burdick, D-Portland,
co-chairwoman of the legis-
lative marijuana regulation
committee, said in May.
Oregon’s legal marijuana
industry sustains 12,500
jobs and yields a projected
$105 million in annual
recreational marijuana tax
revenue, used to support
public
education
and
services, according to a
white paper by Rep. Ann
Lininger, D-Lake Oswego,
who served on the marijuana
regulation committee until
July. Lininger has resigned
from the Legislature, effec-
tive Aug. 15, and is set to
be sworn in as a Clackamas
County Circuit Court judge
Aug. 28.
Twenty-nine states, the
District of Columbia and the
U.S. territories of Guam and
Puerto Rico allow cannabis
use for medical conditions.
Another 17 states permit
limited use of cannabidiol,
or CBD, the non-psychoac-
tive element in marijuana.
FAIR: Law enforcement has increased staff presence
Continued from 1A
McDonald’s, and the Herm-
iston High School parking
lot near Weber Field. The
shuttle will run from 2 to 10
p.m.
In the animal barns,
many said they were getting
used to the space.
“Once all the kinks are
worked out, it’s going to be
absolutely wonderful,” said
Alice Dyer, the superinten-
dent of small animals for the
fair. Dyer said the students
show their animals on
Wednesday and Thursday,
but the fi rst couple of days
are busy for another reason.
“We
individually
vet-check every single
animal,” Dyer said.
Leah Smith, the Future
Farmers of America advisor
at Hermiston High School,
said her students have had
to make some adjustments
to the new venue.
“They’re mostly positive
adjustments,” she said.
“We don’t have to pen our
animals together as much
anymore.”
She said the students
don’t have as much space
Staff photo E.J. Harris
Umatilla County Sheriff’s Sgt. Adam Gregory walks
through one of the animal barns while working Tues-
day at the Umatilla County Fair in Hermiston.
to store their own things,
which is a challenge.
“We’re defi nitely at a
loss for tack space,” she
said. “We will need to
adjust that next year. And
parking, there’s maybe
been some frustration. But
the facilities are beautiful,
and next year, it’s going to
be spot-on.”
Law enforcement will
have their hands full this
year as well.
“It’s just so much
bigger,” said Umatilla
County
Sheriff
Terry
Rowan. “We need to be very
fl uid this week. As the week
progresses, we will likely
fi nd some wrinkles that we
need to iron out.”
Rowan said they have
increased their staff pres-
ence at the fair by about
40 percent, and will also
have a dispatcher stationed
at the fairgrounds during
peak hours on Friday and
Saturday.
The
sheriff’s
staff
and emergency medical
personnel also have a small
building where they can get
cold water and out of the
heat for a moment, Rowan
said.
Rowan said deputies
will be on the lookout for
trespassers and shoplifters,
as well as confl icts, verbal
or physical, between people.
On Tuesday, Rowan
cautiously said so far things
have been quiet.
“We don’t like to use the
‘Q’ word,” he said.
Some fair attractions,
like the vendor booths and
4-H projects, will be on
display throughout the fair.
Rides will start at 2 p.m.
every day and operate until
11. There will be a concert
on the Wildhorse Main
Stage Tuesday through
Saturday night, starting at
9 p.m. Various other shows,
contests and activities will
happen throughout the day.
Check your fair schedule
for all event start times and
places.
———
Contact
Jayati
Ramakrishnan
at
jramakrishnan@eastorego-
nian.com or 541-564-4534
MORE WINNERS.
MORE OFTEN.
Continued from 1A
The siblings kept the
routine a secret from their
mother, learning the move-
ments in three-hour-long
classes with Kishpaugh
and practicing together
for months. Wendy Chris-
tensen saw her children
perform the routine for
the fi rst time at the Junior
Jam dance recital in April.
Wendy cried.
“It sent chills through
my body and tears to my
eyes,” she said. “It was
emotional. It was over-
whelming.”
The siblings performed
together in several other
competitions, improving
a little each time, Terika
said. In late July, they
headed for the Tremaine
Dance Convention and
Competition
in
Las
Vegas. The young dancers
spent each day in a series
of master classes with
professional dancers and
choreographers. The teens
showcased their talents in a
competition against young
dancers from all around the
country, competing in the
senior open duet category.
This was heady stuff for
Remington and Terika, who
both started dancing at the
age of three. They hope to
continue dancing in college
and beyond. Before their
Las Vegas performance,
they prepared in their usual
manner.
“I stay to myself and get
focused,” Remington said.
“I don’t talk much.”
“We go off somewhere
quiet and get into our
zone,” said Terika, who
admitted anxiety at having
professionals from Los
Angeles and New York as
judges.
Afterwards, both teens
felt good about their
performance, but neither
thought they would get
the trophy, considering the
stiff competition. When the
announcement came that
they had won, they looked
at each other in astonish-
ment.
“I was in shock,”
Remington said. “I wasn’t
prepared.”
The
brother/sister
duo will share the trophy
and split the $100 prize.
Remington also received
one of fi ve scholarships
awarded at the convention
to attend next year’s event.
Remington also took
second place in the senior
jazz competition.
The brother and sister
don’t plan to quit dancing
any time soon, as both say
they fi nd fulfi llment and
escape through dance.
“It lets you express
everything,” Terika said.
“You don’t have to think
about anything when you’re
dancing,” Remington said.
“You let everything go.”
Kishpaugh praised her
protégées and said their
accomplishment
came
after hard work and the
embracing of an unorth-
odox routine, one that
required acting skills and
emotion as well as pure
dancing skill. They spent
a year honing the perfor-
mance.
“They didn’t necessarily
have the life experience
to understand all those
emotions, but they kept
digging and digging until
they found them,” Kish-
paugh said.
Both dancers have
unique talents, according to
their coach.
“Terika has no fear,”
Kishpaugh said. “She dives
in and puts her whole being
into it. Her work ethic is
outstanding.”
She said Remington’s
ability has skyrocketed of
late.
“This year, he’s not
just a great dancer, he’s a
performer,” she said.
Wendy thanked Kish-
paugh and her children for
the joy the routine gave her.
“This is a gift that can
never be taken away from
me,” she said.
As for her father,
she’s sure he would have
approved.
“My dad would have
loved it,” she said. “He
would have been glowing.”
———
Contact Kathy Aney at
kaney@eastoregonian.com
or call 541-966-0810.
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