London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Saturday, Aug 29, 2026

Oregon has become the first state to decriminalize drug possession

Oregon has become the first state to decriminalize drug possession

Oregonians can no longer be criminally charged for possessing small amounts of illegal drugs, including heroin, methamphetamine and cocaine.
With the passage of Measure 110, Oregonians took America’s most significant step toward ending the 50-year war on drugs.

Oregon is set to become the first U.S. state to decriminalize possession of all illegal drugs after voters passed a ballot initiative in Tuesday’s election, according to projections.

With the passage of Measure 110, Oregonians can no longer be criminally charged for possessing small amounts of illegal drugs, including heroin, methamphetamine and cocaine. The punishment for these felony and misdemeanor drug possession offenses will now be a simple $100 fine. The initiative also redirects some taxes raised through sales of legal marijuana to finance a new voluntary treatment system for drug users.

This marks the nation’s most significant development toward ending the 50-year war on drugs launched by President Richard Nixon. That catastrophic policy, disproportionately waged against Black, Latino and economically disadvantaged communities, swept generations of young men into a revolving-door criminal justice system punishing them for illegal drug possession or sales while drug usage rates held steady and overdose deaths skyrocketed.

Oregon’s initiative had broad support from groups like the NAACP Portland, local Black Lives Matter chapters, physicians groups and AFSCME, the government workers union whose membership includes corrections officers. It attracted no organized opposition.

Drug Policy Action, a national drug reform group, led the campaign to pass the initiative. The group spent nearly $4.5 million on the effort, while working with state and local activists and supporters.

Supporters of drug decriminalization said they hope the passage of Oregon’s Measure 110 encourages other states to pass similar ballot initiatives or legislation that will ease the war on drugs. They aim to copy the success of the marijuana legalization movement, which has spread quickly across the U.S. over the past decade.

Oregon has been a leader in liberalizing its drug laws in recent years. The state legalized marijuana in 2014 and reduced many drug penalties from felonies to misdemeanors in 2017.
Comments

Oh ya 6 year ago
Any surprise that these are the same people that voted blue

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
UK Hospitality Industry Reports Stronger Summer Trading but Seeks Tax Relief
Reform UK Proposes £30 Tax Credit for Long HMRC Helpline Waits
Labour Debates Caps on Political Donations Ahead of Future Elections
England Accelerates Housing and Planning Reforms Amid Affordability Crisis
NHS Expands Walk-In Community Health Centers to 40 Locations
UK Regulators Expect Meta to Apply Stronger Child Safety Standards Globally
UK Groups Demand Faster Transport Decarbonization After Extreme Summer Weather
UK Launches 10,000 Work Experience Placements as Youth Unemployment Concerns Rise
UK Government Faces Difficult Autumn Budget Choices Over Defense, Spending and Taxes
UK Government Rejects Calls to Slow AI Data Center Expansion
IMF Raises UK Growth Forecast to 1% Despite Global Supply Chain Risks
UK Unsecured Loan Defaults Reach Highest Level Since 2009
UK Energy Price Cap to Rise 4% to Three-Year High of £1,723
More Than 30 Britons Reported Missing After Deadly Nepal-Tibet Floods
Royal Navy Tracks Russian Warships and Sanctioned Vessels in 72-Hour Operation
Police Intensify Investigation Into Organised Crime-Linked Violence in Middlesbrough
UK Small Businesses Face Continued Revenue and Tax Pressures, Federation Says
M&G Real Estate Buys West Sussex Affordable Housing Portfolio for £29 Million
Royal Navy Warship HMS Tamar Visits Cambodia for Regional Security Engagement
UK Government Brings Forward Benefit Payments Ahead of August Bank Holiday
Four Men Plead Guilty to Arson Attack on Jewish Community Ambulances in North London
Ofgem Raises Great Britain’s Household Energy Price Cap by Four Percent From October
UK Government Rejects Green Party Call for Artificial Intelligence Datacentre Moratorium
Millions of UK Benefit Recipients Receive Payments Early Ahead of August Bank Holiday
UK Prime Minister Meets Northern Ireland Leaders in Belfast Over Budget Crisis
Crypto Tax Gains Reach One Point Three Eight Billion Pounds Among UK Investors, HMRC Data Shows
UK Corporate Confidence Rises to Highest Level Since March, Lloyds Survey Shows
Mike Ashley Attacks UK Government Business Rates and Cost-of-Living Policies
Scottish Universities Face Two Hundred Million Pound Annual Funding Gap, Report Warns
Entertainment Figures Urge UK Government to Protect People From AI Voice Cloning
Manchester Airports Group Confirms Customer Data Breached in Cyberattack
Seven Charged Over Vandalism at Donald Trump’s Turnberry Golf Resort in Scotland
Nearly 23,000 UK Households Expected to Move Home on Busiest Day of 2026
UK Benefit Payments to Arrive Early Ahead of August Bank Holiday
Reform UK Pledges to Replace GDPR and Cut Tax Administration Red Tape
Andy Burnham Launches Work Experience Plan for One Million Young People Outside Education or Work
Andy Burnham Faces Labour Backlash After Dropping Support for Political Donations Cap
Andy Burnham Announces UK-Wide Summit With Leaders of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland
Met Office Warns of Heavy Rain and Flood Risk Across England and Wales After Summer Heat
Bank of England Warns AI Adoption Could Reduce Demand for Automatable Jobs
UK Confirms National Salmonella Outbreak With More Than 200 Cases
UK Airports Handle Record 81 Million Passengers Despite Middle East Disruption
Ofgem Raises UK Energy Price Cap by Four Percent to £1,723
Cyber Attack Hits Customer Data Systems at Manchester, Stansted and East Midlands Airports
TSA Unveils Major Airport-Security Overhaul as It Drops Gold+ Privatization Plan
CIA Chief Warned Russia Against Attacking NATO in Secret Moscow Mission
Raheem Sterling Charged With Dangerous Driving After Lamborghini Crash
The Secret Dolly Parton Kept Until Her Death: "She Was Much Sicker Than She Let On"
Middlesbrough House Fire Kills Woman and Seven-Year-Old Girl
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle Return to UK Amid Renewed Media Attention
×