February 6, 2013

Please Support The Oregon Cannabis Legislative Law Reform Money Bomb

February 6, 2013
Oregon marijuana legalization hb 3371 judiciary committee

oregon marijuana cannabis money bomb reformThe Oregon Legislature is poised to consider several pieces of legislation this session that will help improve our marijuana laws.  A bill adding PTSD as a qualifying condition to the Oregon Medical Marijuana Act has already been introduced and a hearing is scheduled for Thursday, February 7th.   We also believe that bills increasing the amount of marijuana needed to garner a felony, regulating the medical marijuana supply system, and  fully legalizing cannabis may also be introduced this session.  Additionally, we may need to defeat bad bills, such as a bill denying medical marijuana patients their Second Amendment rights to acquire a concealed handgun license.  To keep the momentum for reform alive, we must  do everything in our power to ensure a successful legislative session.

The Senate Health and Human Services Committee will hold a hearing on a bill to add PTSD as a qualifying condition this Thursday at 3:00pm.  It is a shame that soldiers who have fought for our country, as well as anyone who has undergone immense trauma, should be denied a nontoxic medicine that can alleviate their severe stress and improve their livelihood. We are in an excellent position to promote this proposal with this strategy:

  • Organizing a pro-reform presence at every hearing on the PTSD bill and every bill that impacts cannabis laws.
  • Identifying undecided legislators and encouraging their constituents who support the proposal to contact their legislator about the issue.
  • Following up with people who contact their legislator, asking them to join our cause. This will allow us to organize face-to-face meetings with any legislator that still remains undecided and build our base of supporters to lobby for further reforms.

You have an exciting opportunity to support this effort today during our First Oregon Legislative Money Bomb!  We believe that if we raise $2,000 we can help Oregon activists organize a supportive presence at every PTSD hearing and cultivate a relationship with legislators and their constituents that will allow Oregon activists to effectively promote future reforms. The Oregon cannabis community has the ability to have a successful legislative session, but we need to make sure all undecided legislators know exactly how their constituents feel about the issue and be effectively organized to impact every proposal affecting Oregon cannabis laws.   Please help us show Oregon Legislators, the general public, and the entire state of Oregon that cannabis law reform is popular by supporting our legislative efforts today.

A generous donor has agreed to match up to $2,000 of every dollar raised during the money bomb, so contribute now & have your contribution to cannabis law reform doubled!

As an added bonus, if you contribute $50 or more, we will ship you a National Cannabis Coalition shirt.  Please indicate your shirt size on the contribution form and if your shipping address is different from your billing address email me the correct address at [email protected].

We are working with Anthony Taylor of Compassionate Oregon

Anthony has been instrumental in getting legislation introduced this session and has agreed to be the cannabis community’s “citizen lobbyist” at a great expense to his pocketbook and time.  Our first priority is to cover the costs of printing that Anthony has incurred and reimburse him for his travel costs.  Anthony was instrumental in Oregon cannabis law reform efforts in the eighties and we are lucky to have him back at work for this important cause.  Anthony has been travelling the state, getting activists and concerned citizens on board and has put together a great team of like-minded activists.

We are working with Geoff Sugerman of the Sugerman Group

Geoff Sugerman is an experienced political consultant with deep roots in Oregon politics.  Geoff was campaign director for Oregonians for Medical Rights, the group that passed the original Oregon Medical Marijuana Act in 1998, providing suffering patients from immunity from prosecution once they qualified under the Act.  In two-plus decades in Oregon, he has also worked for Governor Barbara Roberts, the Speaker of the Oregon House, and the Oregon House Democratic Caucus.  Geoff was also director of the campaign to pass the Oregon Death with Dignity Act and has worked on dozens of Oregon candidate campaigns and initiative efforts.

We will also utilize lobbyists and consultants that have worked successfully with both Republicans and Democrats, providing the Oregon cannabis law reform community experienced advocates this legislative session.  Having political allies that have established strong relationships on both sides of the aisle will only help the chances of moving positive proposals forward and beating back bills that will only hurt patients and waste law enforcement resources.

Let’s raise over $2,000 this week to support cannabis law reform and turn it into over $4,000 thanks to our generous matching donor!

A similar money bomb by our partners in Missouri, Show-Me Cannabis, generated over $2,000 to lead a lobbying campaign to pass marijuana decriminalization in St. Louis.  Let’s unite and beat that total to help add PTSD as a qualifying condition under the Oregon Medical Marijuana Program and establish the foundation to pass other positive cannabis law reforms while also defeating any bills that hurt patients and move Oregon’s marijuana laws in the wrong direction.

Ashland Alternative Health and Northwest Alternative Health, medical cannabis clinics providing great service for qualified patients in Ashland and Eugene have already generously pledged a total of $300, so we have already raised $600, thanks to our matching donor.  Please join them in helping this important legislative fight by making a contribution.  

All donations to this money bomb will go through a fund raising page set up through Blue State Digital, a progressive media strategy firm utilized by the Barack Obama campaign, so all donations can be tracked accordingly.  The money raised and spent will be transparent with the Oregon cannabis law reform community.  We not only want to raise money immediately for these legislative efforts, but to also provide a useful tool for cannabis activists to financially support positive cannabis law reform in the future.  We realize that this can only be done with transparency.

Finally, if you are unable to contribute to this campaign, please sign up for our newsletter, if you haven’t already, so we can keep you updated of potential reforms in Oregon and across the country.  Also, please spread the word to friends and family and encourage everyone, that is financially able, to donate to this important cause.

Contribute to the Oregon Cannabis Legislative Law Reform Money Bomb!

Republished with special permission from the National Cannabis Coalition

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