February 18, 2022 3:30 a.m.

On Thursday, the Oregon Senate passed legislation regarding illegal cannabis enforcement.

Senate Bill 1564 was approved on a 23-1 vote. A release from Oregon Senate Democrats said the legislation authorizes the Oregon Department of Agriculture to impose a temporary moratorium on hemp grower licenses if a county commission declares a cannabis related state of emergency.

Senator Jeff Golden of Ashland said overproduction of hemp can cause critical difficulties for law enforcement in rural areas. Golden is the chair of the Senate Committee on Natural Resources and Wildfire Recovery. Golden said that at face value, hemp is nearly indistinguishable from THC cannabis crops. He said, “Law enforcement asked us to temporarily pause the spread of hemp acreage to improve their ability to deal with bad actors. Because conditions vary across the state, this bill gives local government the key roll of making the call”.

The release said SB 1654 authorizes a county board of commissioners that has declared a state of emergency related to cannabis to notify the Oregon Department of Agriculture of the declaration and request that ODA impose a moratorium on hemp grower licenses in the county. This process would be in effect for the 2022 and 2023 growing seasons.

The proposal now goes to the House of Representatives for consideration.