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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 23, 2018)
NORTHWEST East Oregonian Page 2A Friday, November 23, 2018 Pot tax revenue grows as consumption booms By CLAIRE WITHYCOMBE Capital Bureau SALEM — Oregonians are buying more legal pot than expected. That means they are also poised to pay more taxes on it — about $12.5 million more in the current budget than state economists pro- jected several months ago. The average price of a gram of cannabis on the retail market has dropped from about $10 in late 2016 to just above $4 in mid-2018, according to state figures. But tax collections con- tinue to grow. Altogether, Oregon con- sumers are projected to pay $176 million in state mari- juana taxes during the cur- rent budget cycle, which ends in mid-2019. “Since Oregon lev- ies its recreational mari- juana tax based on the price of the product, the fact that actual tax collections have exceeded expectations is all the more impressive given the ongoing drop in prices,” state economists said in a revenue forecast report last week. “For every ounce sold, or every edible pur- chased, Oregon is receiving less tax revenue per item due to the price decline.” Staff photo by E.J. Harris Kind Leaf was the first marijuana store to open its doors in Pendleton. This photo was taken on June 21, 2017. Wholesale prices have also decreased in that period, but less dramatically. Consumers are turning away from other sources, like the black market and medical marijuana, and toward recreational retail, state economists say. And more Oregonians are using cannabis, according to the forecast. Nationally, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration says the percentage of adults who report using marijuana in the past month has grown to 7.9 percent in 2017, com- pared with 6.5 percent in 2015. In August, recreational marijuana consumers bought more than $52.5 million worth of cannabis, accord- ing to the Oregon Liquor Control Commission, which tracks sales data. The OLCC says in that month alone, recreational and medical consumers in Oregon bought at least 16,000 pounds of usable marijuana, about 400,000 units of edibles and tinctures and more than 600,000 units of marijuana extracts and concentrates. State economists say that the spate of local mea- sures passed in November to allow cannabis in certain cit- ies and counties aren’t likely to nudge tax collections up further, though. Six cities voted to allow recreational marijuana, four of them repealing existing bans. Nearly 30 measures related to marijuana were on local ballots this November. “In terms of recent elec- tions, the places today vot- ing on (marijuana) are all small and won’t have that much of an impact on state- wide sales,” said state econ- Forecast for Pendleton Area TODAY SATURDAY SUNDAY MONDAY TUESDAY Mostly cloudy, afternoon showers Partly sunny Mostly cloudy Considerable cloudiness Cloudy, chance of a little rain 49° 36° 47° 28° PENDLETON TEMPERATURE FORECAST 45° 31° 45° 39° 51° 41° HERMISTON TEMPERATURE FORECAST 51° 37° 50° 28° 45° 31° 42° 37° OREGON FORECAST 52° 42° PENDLETON through 3 p.m. yest. HIGH LOW TEMP. Olympia 50/40 46/33 47/25 Longview Kennewick Walla Walla 49/36 Lewiston 51/40 53/34 Astoria 52/41 Pullman Yakima 46/26 49/36 50/35 Portland Hermiston 51/40 The Dalles 51/37 Salem Corvallis 51/36 Yesterday Normals Records La Grande 44/31 PRECIPITATION John Day Eugene Bend 52/37 49/26 45/31 Ontario 44/32 Caldwell Burns 44° 24° 47° 32° 73° (1974) 6° (2013) 24 hours ending 3 p.m. Month to date Normal month to date Year to date Last year to date Normal year to date Albany 51/37 Trace 0.01" 0.84" 6.46" 8.56" 8.12" WINDS (in mph) 44/32 40/16 Trace 0.10" 1.03" 8.25" 14.70" 11.02" through 3 p.m. yest. HIGH LOW TEMP. Pendleton 43/29 52/37 24 hours ending 3 p.m. Month to date Normal month to date Year to date Last year to date Normal year to date HERMISTON Enterprise 49/36 47/38 52° 27° 46° 31° 71° (1933) -5° (1985) PRECIPITATION Moses Lake 50/34 Aberdeen 42/29 41/30 Tacoma Yesterday Normals Records Spokane Wenatchee 50/40 Today Boardman Pendleton Medford 54/37 Sat. SW 6-12 SSW 7-14 WSW 6-12 WSW 6-12 SUN AND MOON Klamath Falls 47/27 Forecasts and graphics provided by AccuWeather, Inc. ©2018 Sunrise today Sunset tonight Moonrise today Moonset today 7:05 a.m. 4:17 p.m. 5:08 p.m. 7:20 a.m. Last New First Full Nov 29 Dec 6 Dec 15 Dec 22 NATIONAL EXTREMES Yesterday’s National Extremes: (for the 48 contiguous states) High 82° in Pompano Beach, Fla. Low -21° in Raco, Mich. NATIONAL WEATHER TODAY Shown are noon positions of weather systems and precipitation. Temperature bands are highs for the day. -10s -0s 0s showers t-storms 10s rain 20s flurries 30s snow 40s ice 50s cold front — Founded Oct. 16, 1875 — 211 S.E. Byers Ave., Pendleton 541-276-2211 333 E. Main St., Hermiston 541-567-6211 Office hours: Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Closed major holidays www.eastoregonian.com To subscribe, call 1-800-522-0255 or go online to www.eastoregonian.com and click on ‘Subscribe’ East Oregonian (USPS 164-980) is published daily except Sunday, Monday and postal holidays, by the EO Media Group, 211 S.E. Byers Ave. Pendleton, OR 97801. Periodicals postage paid at Pendleton, OR. Postmaster: send address changes to East Oregonian, 211 S.E. Byers Ave. Pendleton, OR 97801. Copyright © 2018, EO Media Group 60s 70s 80s 90s 100s warm front stationary front 110s high low By AUBREY WIEBER Oregon Capital Bureau A conservative think tank is suing two Oregon labor unions, saying they are col- lecting union dues in violation of a U.S. Supreme Court decision last June. The class-action lawsuit, Anderson et al. v. SEIU et al, was filed on Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Portland. In June, the Supreme ruled in Janus v. AFSCME that forcing all employees to pay dues and fees when they aren’t union members under “fair share” provisions violated the First Amendment. The decision was considered by some to be a strong blow for organized labor. But in Oregon, where unions have deep roots, the effect has been minimal. Some union leaders reported an increase in membership. In the months since, thousands of workers in Oregon have asked to with- draw from the unions, according to Aaron Withe, Oregon director of Freedom Foun- dation, which filed the case this week. About one-fourth was told they could withdraw from their unions, but would have to pay dues through an extended date set by the labor contract. According to the lawsuit, most have about another year to pay. Freedom Foundation is contesting that extended assessment. Withe said that since they signed the agreement without knowing about the Janus decision, those agreements aren’t valid. Freedom Foundation sued on behalf of 10 plaintiffs, but claimed in the filing there are hundreds more. Plaintiffs who were assessed by Ser- vice Employees International Union Local 503 include Loriann Anderson, an employee of Western Oregon University; Rene Layton, an employee of the Wal- lowa County District Attorney’s Office; Dennis Richey, an employee for Jackson County; and Melinda Wiltse, who works for Marion County. Plaintiffs represented by American Federation of State, County and Munici- pal Employees Council 75 are Kerrin Fis- cus, employed by the Oregon Board of Parole; Kenneth Hill, employed by the Oregon Military Department; Michael Miller, employed by the Oregon Depart- ment of Corrections; Bernard Perkins, who works for Lane County; Kathie Sim- mons, employed by the city of Portland Subscriber services: For mail delivery, online access, vacation stops or delivery concerns call 1-800-522-0255 ext. 1 SUBSCRIPTION RATES Local home delivery Savings off cover price EZPay $14.50 41 percent 52 weeks $173.67 41 percent 26 weeks $91.86 38 percent 13 weeks $47.77 36 percent *EZ Pay = one-year rate with a monthly credit or debit card/check charge Single copy price: $1 Tuesday through Friday, $1.50 Saturday Circulation Manager: Bonny Tuller, 541-966-0828 vide detailed regional data on marijuana sales taxes. “Many areas only have a few businesses operat- ing within their limits,” Joy Krawczyk, a spokeswoman for the tax agency, said in an email. “Providing infor- mation about how much was collected in that area — along with the use of other publicly-available informa- tion or knowledge held by one of the other taxpayers in that area — could allow for the determination of specif- ics of individual tax returns.” Disclosing the particulars of a return is illegal, Kraw- czyk said. In the years to come, col- lections from recreational marijuana are likely to grow, although there are signif- icant risks attendant with the marijuana industry, state economists said. A significant possible downside: cannabis remains illegal under federal law, leaving the industry open to risk in the event of a federal crackdown. Oregon U.S. Attorney Billy Williams has expressed concerns about the illegal shipment of Ore- gon marijuana across state lines. Williams also believes the state is producing far more cannabis than its resi- dents can consume. Freedom Foundation takes its latest shot at Oregon unions ALMANAC Shown is today’s weather. Temperatures are today’s highs and tonight’s lows. Seattle omist Josh Lehner in an email to the Oregon Capital Bureau. “It’s not like there is another big population juris- diction out there that has yet to legalize, I don’t think.” Lehner said certain cit- ies and counties could actu- ally see declines in mari- juana tax revenues now that more of them have voted to allow recreational marijuana within their boundaries. “The border effect of where sales are legal and how consumers access them is important,” Lehner said. “So a neighboring town may see some losses as more towns legalize.” Recreational marijuana retailers must charge a 17 percent state tax on sales. Cities and counties can charge local taxes of up to 3 percent on sales, too, but state economists focus their projections on state mari- juana taxes. Sales to consumers with medical marijuana patient cards aren’t taxed. The tax money, minus administrative costs, goes to a dedicated state marijuana account that in turn goes to K-12 education, mental health services, police and cities and counties. The state Revenue Department couldn’t pro- ADVERTISING Regional Publisher and Revenue Director: Christopher Rush 541-278-2669 • crush@eomediagroup.com Advertising Services: Angela Treadwell 541-966-0827 • atreadwell@eastoregonian.com Grace Bubar 541-276-2214 • gbubar@eastoregonian.com Multimedia Consultants: • Kimberly Macias 541-278-2683 • kmacias@eastoregonian.com • Jeanne Jewett 541-564-4531 • jjewett@eastoregonian.com • Dayle Stinson 541-278-2670 • dstinson@eastoregonian.com • Audra Workman 541-564-4538 • aworkman@eastoregonian.com and Kent Wiles, who works for North- West Senior and Disability Services. The suit names the two unions, the employers and Katy Coba, the director of the Oregon Department of Administrative Services, as defendants. Both unions declined to comment, as did the Oregon Department of Adminis- trative Services. Withe said the Freedom Foundation found the plaintiffs by helping workers opt out of their unions, and offering legal services to those still told they had to pay dues. Peter Starzynski, executive director of the Northwest Accountability Proj- ect, said filing the lawsuit the day before Thanksgiving when people are less likely to be at work was purposeful. The North- west Accountability Project is a pro-union organization aimed at shedding light on right-wing organizations. “Their litigation tactics are as political as anything else they do,” he said. The accountability group has long dealt with the Freedom Foundation, Starzynski said. “The Freedom Foundation is a politi- cal organization that is trying to destroy unions in the northwest on behalf of their out-of-state billionaire funders,” Starzynski said. “Part of their strategy is to file frivolous lawsuits to try to waste unions’ time and money.” But Withe said this isn’t about destroy- ing unions, it’s about exposing union tactics. “I think this is just a money-making scheme by the unions,” he said. While the class-action suit only has 10 members, Withe said the Freedom Foun- dation has helped 6,500 Oregonians opt out of their union. Reporter Aubrey Wieber: aubrey@ salemreporter.com or 503-575-1251. Wieber is a reporter for Salem Reporter who works for the Oregon Capital Bureau, a collaboration of EO Media Group, the Pamplin Media Group, and Salem Reporter. Corrections The East Oregonian works hard to be accurate and sincerely regrets any errors. If you notice a mistake in the paper, please call 541-966-0818. Classified & Legal Advertising 1-800-962-2819 or 541-278-2678 classifieds@eastoregonian.com or legals@eastoregonian.com NEWS • To submit news tips and press releases: call 541-966-0818 or email news@eastoregonian.com • To submit community events, calendar items and Your EO News: email community@eastoregonian.com or call Tammy Malgesini at 541-564-4539 or Renee Struthers at 541-966-0818. • To submit engagements, weddings and anniversaries: email rstruthers@eastoregonian.com or visit www.eastoregonian. com/community/announcements • To submit sports or outdoors information or tips: 541-966-0838 • sports@eastoregonian.com Business Office Manager: 541-966-0822 COMMERCIAL PRINTING Production Manager: Mike Jensen 541-215-0824 • mjensen@eastoregonian.com
