As of Thursday, anyone 21 or older can legally buy edible marijuana products, extracts and lotions in Oregon. There goes another brick in the wall of pot prohibition that Oregonians voted to tear down in 2014.

It's likely that many Oregonians weren't aware of just how thorough the demolition job would be. An anything-goes marijuana economy is emerging, where everything from old-fashioned joints to pot-infused truffles is available. The Oregon Liquor Control Commission, which is charged with regulating recreational marijuana, needs to be vigilant in protecting consumers and public health - and the 2017 Legislature should be prepared to address any unwanted and unforeseen consequences of legalization.

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I lucked into a few thousand bucks. Can I invest in weed?

YES, BUT probably not in the way you're thinking.

The general rule in this country is that only wealthy people get to invest in private companies. These "accredited investors" are allowed to invest under an exemption to the Securities and Exchange Commission's private offerings rules. If you made $200,000 for each of the past few years, or your net worth is north of $1 million, you may qualify. Most of us do not qualify, and probably don't fall under one of the less common exemptions either. The idea is that most people could not weather a financial shellacking and the world is filled with crooks.

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Health Officials Warn to Keep Them Away From Children

Area marijuana dispensaries and public health officials are recommending that recreational users use caution with extracts and edibles that will be come available Thursday, especially around children.

Edible marijuana products with up to 15 milligrams of THC will be available at dispensaries that serve recreational users 21 and older. What's available at dispensaries for recreational users has a fraction of the potency available to medical marijuana cardholders, but Peter Gross, COO of Green Valley Wellness and Epic Edibles, says those not familiar with how an edible product affects them should be careful in the beginning.

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It's Easy to Overdo Edibles. Here's Proof.

RECREATIONAL CANNABIS EDIBLES are legal in Oregon starting June 2, which is great news. To be honest, I've actually been crafting them for recreational and medical use for more than 20 years. I often get asked, "Have you ever gotten too high on edibles?" And the answer is: Of course-regular readers will recognize impulse control isn't one of my strong points.

The real question, though, is: "What's the worst experience someone's ever had from eating too many of your special cookies?" That's a long list from which to choose.

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Bud bonus: We supported the legalization of recreational marijuana in 2014 for a number of reasons, from our belief in the reasonable exercise of personal liberty to the fact that recreational use was basically legal already thanks to the state's medical marijuana program. Way, way down on the list was the potential for recreational weed to generate piles of tax revenue. Legalization would make sense even if it produced nothing for state or local governments.

Still, $10.5 million is nothing to sneeze at. That's how much the state has collected in only the first three months of taxed marijuana sales, Noelle Crombie of The Oregonian/OregonLive reported this week. At that rate, the state will pull in about $43 million in tax revenue from pot sales this year, according to the Legislative Revenue Office. That number might not seem large compared to, say, the billions of dollars the state collects in personal income taxes each year. But it's a heck of a lot more than the $2 million to $3 million in revenue economists had expected the state to collect this year.

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Today, Oregon Governor Kate Brown signed into law a provision of SB 1511, which will allow dispensaries to sell marijuana edibles and extracts to recreational customers.

Under the current SB 1511, dispensaries are only able to sell edible and extract products to medicinal patients. Edibles and extracts were included in the original draft of the bill, but lawmakers decided there were too many safety concerns that needed to be assessed before they could include them in recreational sales.

Myron Brandwine manages Casper's Cannabis Club, the recently opened marijuana dispensary near the University of Oregon. He said they are looking forward to selling these products to recreational customers.

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Not All of Oregon Supports Legal Weed

I HEARD WEED is still not happening in parts of Oregon. What's the latest?

Things are coming around slowly. You know: strikes and gutters, ups and downs.

You may recall that last week, when you dropped off your ballot for the presidential, state, and local races, pot was not on the ballot. For people in Grant and Klamath counties, the opposite was true. Both counties voted on measures to allow medical and retail facilities, and to allow citizens of the empire to access weed as we do here in Portland. Regrettably, both measures failed.

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It's Easy to Forget About Anti-Weed Prohibitionists. Don't.

AS WE APPROACH the one-year anniversary of recreational cannabis legalization in Oregon, it's easy to forget about the prohibitionist forces that aren't happy about it. This is a mistake, though-these opponents are spending massive amounts of time, money, and energy to roll back the progress that's been made.

I've always struggled to understand who these prohibitionists are. I get that some religious people have a moral objection to cannabis and its use-which they've somehow extrapolated from that very popular book about the zombie miracle worker with a cool beverage party trick, who struggled with some serious daddy issues before being immortalized as a white Middle Easterner who looks like the Dude.

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Commissioners OK Step After Beefing Up Zoning Enforcement.

Clackamas County voters will be asked to approve a 3 percent local tax on retail sales of marijuana for recreational use.

County commissioners started the process of referring the tax to the Nov. 8 ballot Tuesday, after they approved several steps to beef up enforcement against marijuana-related violations of zoning and development regulations.

"This commission has said we want teeth in this, so let's put some teeth into it," Commissioner Tootie Smith said.

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Deschutes County commissioners may take the first step toward approval of the rules governing the growing, processing and sales of marijuana in the unincorporated county today. The move would put them on track to adopt county code changes in early June.

It's the right thing to do. Marijuana use, both recreational and medical, is now legal in the state of Oregon and that should mean it's also legal to produce the stuff. What's proposed, meanwhile, strikes a reasonable balance between those who would ban all marijuana production from the county and those who would like to be able to grow, process or sell it anywhere they please.

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I am very disappointed by the lack of temerity on the part of the Medford City Council by putting it out to vote on the growing of marijuana in the city limits. I feel the council has been swayed by the minority protestors. Until you have lived next to a pot grow and had to share the skunk like odors you won't know how unpleasant it can be.

Also if it is allowed, what will the city do if a neighbor files a complaint? And will there be any law on how far away from a school a pot grow can be established. These are questions voters should know the answers to before voting.

Chuck Gates

Medford

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MEDFORD, Ore. - Only a handful of medical marijuana growers have applied for Jackson County permits to keep growing on rural residential land - even though growers without permits face fines of up to $10,000 and orders to remove their plants.

Most are flying under the radar, hoping to avoid detection rather than pay the $1,563 permit application fee, the Mail Tribune reported.

Jackson County has received only seven applications from growers hoping to be grandfathered in by qualifying for a pre-existing, non-conforming use permit.

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Bend city councilors decided Wednesday to expand the options for marijuana processors in the city of Bend even as they highlighted a problem with city zoning that the community development department hopes to correct this fall.

Most of what the council did will bring city code into line with changes in marijuana law passed by the 2016 Legislature. Thus the code no longer defines recreational and medical marijuana separately, either for retail or manufacturing purposes.

Councilors also agreed to allow marijuana processing in what are known as mixed employment districts, areas where a variety of businesses and some residential buildings are allowed.

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Patenting Isn't Easy, But It Can Be Done

I CULTIVATED an innovative new strain of weed. Can I patent it?

Yes, you probably can.

The first weed strain patent was issued last August to a group of California breeders. This raised some eyebrows, and the US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has since confirmed that it is processing both plant and utility patent applications for individual varieties of cannabis (and also poppy). To acquire a plant patent, your weed strain must simply have a distinct characteristic. To acquire a utility patent, however, it must be new and non-obvious as compared to existing strains. It also must exhibit different characteristics from weed in its natural state. Aside from that, one USPTO spokesperson recently assured a Vice magazine journalist that "there are no special statutory requirements of restrictions applied to marijuana plants." So, there you have it.

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You Can't Overdose on Pot-But Don't Eat Too Much of It

AS MY POT COLUMNIST colleague Vince Sliwoski pointed out in his Ask a Pot Lawyer column last week, early recreational sales for cannabis edibles, extracts, and topicals will begin in Oregon on June 2. The edibles must stay at a low dose of 15 milligrams or less, while edibles sold to medical patients won't have a THC limit, just like at present.

Why the difference between recreational and medical users?

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Marijuana Production, Growing And Extraction Could Be Permitted In Makers District

Marijuana dispensaries may soon be treated more like other businesses in Bend.

The Bend City Council discussed a number of changes Wednesday night that may affect marijuana businesses. Council members read a few potential amendments to the Bend development code and the city code that relate to marijuana businesses and approved the first reading of those amendments.

Back in December, the council adopted regulations for marijuana businesses. State Senate Bill 1511 was later adopted in February. The bill allows recreational marijuana licensees to register with the Oregon Liquor Control Commission to produce, process, transfer or sell marijuana for medical purposes too.

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The Deschutes County Commission has agreed to repeal the ban prohibiting recreational and medical marijuana businesses from operating in unincorporated parts of the county.

It hasn't been an easy decision for the commissioners. It shouldn't be an easy decision given the complexities involved. But it was the right decision.

The commissioners put the ban in place after becoming concerned about having adequate rules in place to regulate the crop. It was a temporary opt-out of the state rules allowing marijuana businesses. It did not stop medical marijuana grows or recreational use of pot.

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Shayne Christen is a man of few words.

Asked what he would do about economic development, if he were elected to the Josephine County Board of Commissioners, he replied, "We need to do something about more jobs. There's a lot of possibilities."

Asked about what he would do about the county's public safety funding problem, he replied, "We've got to generate some more funds for that. It's going to take teamwork to find out where those funds are going to come from."

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Legalization of marijuana in Oregon has created at least 2,165 jobs and will add more as the market matures, a new report suggests.

Nearly $46 million in payroll will be paid to retail cannabis employees statewide in 2016, according to the "Oregon Cannabis Jobs Report," sponsored by cannabis industry consulting firms New Economy Consulting and Whitney Economics.

By comparison, Oregon's beer, wine and liquor sector employed 1,450 people and paid $28 million in wages in 2015, according to Employment Department data.

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For the past 10 to 15 years, every time a medical marijuana grower was raided, a spokesperson for the marijuana lobby would get in front of a camera or give a statement to a reporter saying words to the effect of "patients will suffer," or "where will my patients get their medicine?" The message discipline of the lobby was and continues to be highly effective. How could any caring person deny a patient their medicine?

So, it was nothing short of miraculous on Jan. 1, 2015, when personal possession of marijuana became legal, that suddenly enough marijuana became available for massive free marijuana giveaways in several locations throughout the valley.

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