Town Hall | Oregon's drug crisis: Is Measure 110 the answer?

By KATU Staff

PORTLAND, Ore. — KATU hosted a Town Hall called “Oregon's Drug Crisis: Is Measure 110 The Answer?”

Measure 110 is the drug decriminalization and addiction treatment law, which passed with 58% of the vote back in November 2020. The measure decriminalized small amounts of hard drugs and also dedicated tax dollars from marijuana sales to addiction treatment.

Three years later, some are questioning the effects of the measure, and believe it is fueling more public drug use on our streets.

Supporters say the funds from Measure 110 allow them to help more people across the state, pointing to services coming online now. They say tougher criminal penalties do not encourage people to get more treatment, and believe it does more harm than good.

Still, some of the measure's biggest supporters say the rollout of treatment services didn't happen fast enough.

In the Town Hall, our team will be joined by supporters, critics, elected officials, police, and community members to discuss what is and isn’t working with the measure.

You can watch recorded the Town Hall here: