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Newsbrief:
Oregon
Drug
Task
Force
Wants
Tax
Hike
to
Fund
Operations
9/13/02
The asset forfeiture reform
initiative passed by Oregon voters in 2000 is causing financial problems
for the state's 25 multi-jurisdictional drug task forces, and one of them,
the South Coast Interagency Narcotics Team, will ask Coos County voters
this November to approve a tax increase to fund its operations, the Oregonian
(Portland) reported on Saturday. The task force may have to shut
down or sharply scale back by next spring if the tax measure is not approved,
said team coordinator Sgt. Dan Looney of the Coos County Sheriff's Department.
The South Coast task force
isn't the only one facing problems. According to the Oregonian, Portland's
Regional Organized Crime Narcotics Agency is also running out of money.
The task force can operate until June 2003, "and then we'll have to make
tough management decisions," said Multnomah County (Portland) District
Attorney Michael Schrunk.
A 1989 asset forfeiture law
allowed police to use seized cash and goods to finance their operations,
but after voters approved reform in 2000, that money was largely directed
to drug treatment. After law enforcement bellowed loudly, the Oregon
legislature last year approved a bill that directed 40% of seizure to police
and prosecutors. But that isn't enough for the task forces.
The Coos County ballot measure
seeks to raise $250,000 for the drug squad, which has a budget this year
of $319,000. The tax increase would come to $12.18 for an average
Coos County home valued at $87,000.
-- END --
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Issue #254, 9/13/02
Conflict Heightening in California Medical Marijuana Battle | Michigan "Treatment Not Jail" Initiative Knocked Off Ballot | Dance Culture Holds Raves Against RAVE Act -- Techno at the Capitol Last Friday | Montana Activists Hold First Drug Policy Summit | Marijuana Reform Party Makes New York Ballot | Pictures of DRCNet StopTheDrugWar.org Merchandise Now Online | John Perry Featured on NY1 News Channel | Urgent: Demand Freedom for the Tulia Victims | Other Alerts: Rave Bill, Medical Marijuana, Higher Education Act Drug Provision | Newsbrief: Seattle Marijuana Initiative in Trouble | Newsbrief: Canadian Justice Minister Calls for Marijuana Decriminalization Next Year, Rejects Legalization | Newsbrief: Noelle Bush in Trouble Again | Newsbrief: Afghan Marijuana Trade Back in Business | Newsbrief: Missouri Man Takes Pot Shots at Dope Chopper | Newsbrief: Oregon Drug Task Force Wants Tax Hike to Fund Operations | Newsbrief: Tennessee Drug Task Force Director Fired for Sampling Evidence Stash | Web Scan: WAMM, State on Eradication, Deborah Small, DEA Museum, Canada, California Student Survey, The Onion | The Reformer's Calendar
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