Medical cannabis
Medical cannabis reform activists filed Initiative 28, an initiative that would create a licensed and regulated medical marijuana supply system through non-profit dispensaries. The initiative was co-authored by John Sajo who helped draft the Oregon Medical Marijuana Act and Anthony Johnson who co-authored successful marijuana law reform measures while in law school at the University of Missouri-Columbia School of Law. Supporters argue that the measure is needed to ensure that patients have a supply of medical cannabis and that the imposed licensing fees will generate millions of dollars in revenue for the state. Fees collected from the dispensaries and their producers will be utilized to fund medical research, establish a program to assist-low income patients and help finance Oregon health programs, such as the Oregon Health Plan. The Coalition for Patients Rights first turned in over 61,000 signatures on January 11, 2010, to the Oregon Secretary of State and needed 82,769 valid signatures to qualify the measure for the November 2010 ballot. Members of the patients' rights coalition, including Oregon Green Free, Voter Power and Southern Oregon NORML eventually collected enough signatures to place the initiative on the ballot. On August 2, 2010, the Oregon Secretary of State announced that the non-profit dispensary proposal would be placed on the November ballot as Voters' Pamphlet, Measure 74, page 59.