| Graphic: KVAL.com |
| Legalizing and taxing cannabis could help plug holes in Oregon’s state budget, according to supporters |
Oregon’s marijuana legalization initiative, the Oregon Cannabis Tax Act (OCTA), is kicking off its signature-gathering phase at the OR NORML meeting in Portland this Saturday, April 10.
Petitions have just been approved for circulation by the Oregon Secretary of State’s Office, and OCTA said it expects more than 300 attendees to be among the first to sign the petition for this historic ballot measure.
OCTA will generate revenue by taxing commercial cannabis sales, which will be permitted to adults 21 and older. More than $140 million a year would be generated by OCTA for the state’s General Fund, according to projections, paying for education, roads, health care, and other public projects.
“OCTA will transform Oregon,” said co-chief petitioner Madeleine Martinez, executive director of OR NORML. “Supporting OCTA is a no-brainer.”
| Photo: CafePress |
According to OCTA’s other co-chief petitioner, Paul Stanford of The Hemp and Cannabis Foundation (THCF), the potential of industrial hemp for Oregon’s economy is limitless, as it will turn the state into a national leader in ecological innovation and sustainable jobs.
“The entire hemp plant is useful, from its seeds which create a food source to its oil which can be made into bio-diesel to its stalks which can be woven into fabrics or turned into paper,” Stanford said. “Hemp is the future, not just for Oregon, but for a sustainable planet.”
The campaign said it will collect 125,000 signatures by July 2 in order to qualify for November’s ballot.
OCTA has hired Democracy Resources, a Portland-based signature-gathering firm with a proven track record of success, to ensure the petition makes the ballot. The campaign said it already has raised more than half the money required to fund a paid signature gathering effort.
For more information on OCTA, as well as to make a donation and get involved, visit www.cannabistaxact.org.
