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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Neighbors Upset About Odors, Noise, Traffic

With the start of the outdoor marijuana growing season, Jackson County officials are gearing up for complaints from neighbors upset about nearby grows.

Last summer, neighbors complained about skunk-like odors from maturing marijuana plants, barking and aggressive guard dogs, people camping out to guard and tend crops, traffic, guns and noise.

Although most marijuana plants are still small or haven't been transplanted outdoors yet this season, the county is already fielding complaints.

"What we've experienced so far is people had neighbors growing last year. They're calling now to complain when the neighbors are not doing anything," said Jackson County Development Services Director Kelly Madding.

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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.

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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Clay Bearnson Believed to Be the First City Councilor in the State to Own Pot Shop

A member of the Medford City Council, known for its tough stance on legalized marijuana, has opened his own dispensary.

Clay Bearnson is believed to be the first city councilor in Oregon to own a cannabis dispensary, though that could not be immediately confirmed by the Oregon Health Authority.

"That feels pretty cool," Bearnson said.

Bearnson and five partners opened Oregon Farmacy at 1 W. Sixth St., Suite 104, in the Acme Building facing Evergreen Way, about two weeks ago. A grand opening is planned later.

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What Last Week's Investor Pitch Forum Was Like

LET'S PRETEND that you're operating or want to start a cannabis business. Maybe you want to grow, make edibles or concentrates, start or expand a dispensary, or produce ancillary products like rolling papers and vaporizers.

Where do you get the funding? You can't get approved for a standard bank account if you're involved in the weed industry. So unless you own a scary clown mask and starter pistol, or have a wealthy elderly relative with a serious heart condition, your options are limited.

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Here's What You Need to Know About the New Rules for Edibles, Topicals, and Concentrates

I HEARD we all get to buy cannabis edibles soon. How does this work?

Mark your calendar for Thursday, June 2. Those who are 21 and over will be able to buy edibles-and extracts and topicals, too.

You may recall that a few months back, the Oregon Legislature passed an "emergency" raft of weed bills. One of them authorized expansion of the early-start program, under which regular joes have bought flower and plants at medical marijuana dispensaries since last October. Because the early-start program was successful, and because the Oregon Health Authority's (OHA) regulatory infrastructure was close to built out, the legislature said "sure."

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The recreational marijuana market in Oregon will grow beyond flower, into edibles and extracts, in less than a month.

Starting June 2, medical marijuana dispensaries registered with the Oregon Health Authority will be able to sell low-dose edibles containing no more than 15 milligrams of THC, the psychoactive chemical in marijuana, and extracts with 1,000 milligrams of THC or less to recreational customers. Currently, only people with -Oregon - -Medical Marijuana -Program cards are able to purchase -edibles and extracts.

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Cannabis Helps with PTSD, and So Can You

I'M A BIG SUPPORTER of allowing armed forces veterans access to cannabis-seeing as how I'm a huge wussy who wouldn't have made it through three hours of basic training, much less full-on combat. I have enough trouble fighting off a cold.

Recently it seems hell may have frozen over, as the Drug Enforcement Administration has authorized a study to see how the use of smoking cannabis can treat post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). It's the first clinical study on PTSD to use cannabis in its raw, smokeable form.

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Jackson County Company Among First Eight Licensees

A Jackson County company is among the first eight businesses statewide to receive a coveted recreational marijuana growing license from the Oregon Liquor Control Commission.

The OLCC this week announced the first recipients, which include Southern Oregon Cannabis Co. LLC., located off East Evans Creek Road north of Rogue River.

"It is very exciting for sure," said owner Devin Ellis.

He said about a dozen family members and friends are working for the company. After receiving the license, they planted marijuana seeds, which are beginning to sprout.

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The federal government says it's reviewing marijuana's status as a Schedule 1 drug, a move that - regardless of what you think about the drug - is long overdue.

The U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency made the announcement in a memo to lawmakers and said it hopes to have a decision ready sometime in the first half of this year.

Marijuana has long been classified as a Schedule 1 drug, but the classification is as ludicrous today as it was back in the day. The Schedule 1 category is for substances which are not considered to have "any currently accepted medical use in the U.S., a lack of accepted safety for use under medical supervision and a high potential for abuse." By point of comparison, heroin also is a Schedule 1 drug.

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What's It Like to Live with a Weed Columnist?

OUR CANNABUZZ COLUMNIST had a rough week, starting with overconsumption on 4/20, followed by the loss of our greatest Granddaddy Purple, Prince. As Josh Jardine gets his head together, man, we bring in a special guest columnist-his long-suffering girlfriend. Wishing to remain anonymous (for myriad easy-to-understand reasons), let's refer to her as "C."

As my boyfriend recovers from his newest self-designed 4/20 challenge, AKA "How Many Marijuana Gummies Can I Fit in My Mouth at One Time?" (Answer: 28, and also, why babe? Why?), I've been asked to take over this week's column.

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The marijuana legalization question on the ballots in about a dozen states this fall may be a simple yes or no proposition. But today's conversation about marijuana is more complicated than you'd think, especially compared to the mostly one-sided debates of the war-on-drugs era.

The campaigns in Massachusetts are already heating up. The proponents, a local affiliate of the Campaign to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol, have been at it for a year, collecting signatures and building a base of support. The opposition opened its campaign this month, with Gov. Charlie Baker and Boston Mayor Marty Walsh taking the lead and a new group, the Campaign for a Safe and Healthy Massachusetts, is backing them up.

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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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Growers Have Inquired About Putting In Structures For Raising Marijuana At The Park

The city of La Pine is attempting to refine its zoning ordinance to allow for indoor agriculture on industrial land in anticipation of marijuana being grown there.

The La Pine Planning Commission will be holding a public hearing Tuesday at City Hall to consider a text amendment that would allow indoor agriculture within the city's industrial zone.

The zoning ordinance change would also require growing to be done inside a permitted building instead of in a trailer or "hoop house," a structure with metal or plastic hoops covered by plastic.

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The Eugene Home Science Club, which is more than 100 years old, has about two dozen members these days.

All the women are age 60 or older. And for a recent meeting, their guest speaker was a state specialist in marijuana.

As The Register-Guard reported, "With the advent first of medical marijuana, and last year of legal recreational marijuana, residents of all ages are curious about the intoxicating buds that rapidly are becoming big business."

Only the federal government seems to be clueless about the big business of marijuana in Oregon and elsewhere. The feds still classify marijuana not only as an illegal drug but as one of the most dangerous.

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The Effects of Marijuana Legalization Are Just Starting to Be Realized

Marijuana became legal in Oregon only recently, but its legacy in Oregon has deep roots.

Marijuana's long road to legalization culminated in Ballot Measure 91, passed by voters in 2014. Now anyone 21 and older can possess up to 8 ounces of marijuana and grow up to four plants. Most medical marijuana dispensaries in the county have also begun selling recreational marijuana.

In 1998, Oregon voters approved medical marijuana under the Oregon Medical Marijuana Act, opening the floodgates to pot production, particularly in Southern Oregon because of its long growing season.

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The recent news about a looming controversy regarding medical marijuana and an experimental epilepsy drug raises intriguing questions - but, in the long run, likely will be seen as a footnote on the road to more widespread legalization.

At issue in the recent case is an experimental drug, Epidiolex, which is made from cannabis plants grown in England. The drug is a nearly pure extract of cannabidiol, or CBD. It has little of the substance in marijuana, tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), that produces the traditional pot high. A researcher in Columbus, Ohio, says that Epidiolex has shown great promise in treating seizures, especially among children. And, the researcher notes, studies have suggested that children can be hurt by using the whole marijuana plant.

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Richard Nixon's war on drugs, announced in June 1971, had one purpose and one purpose only: to create a tool to harass, persecute and incarcerate the hippies and blacks who were protesting the Vietnam War, according to an article in the current Harper's magazine.

Nixon's closest adviser, John Ehrlichman, and the president concocted this hoax for purely political reasons! Two men lied and a million died.

Marijuana was at the heart of the war on drugs, and it was classified as a Schedule I drug, one that had no medical use and was highly addictive, both lies. The justification for the prohibition of marijuana has been destroyed; Obama should immediately declare the "war" over; our jails should be emptied of nonviolent drug offenders, and some reparations should be considered for the victims of Nixon's horrendous crime.

I am amazed that the Ehrlichman revelation was not on the front page of every newspaper in the world.

Louis Philippe Goldman

Ashland

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WHO LIKES POT NEWS? We like pot news! Come get some pot news before it gets cold...

DEA to Reschedule Cannabis... Maybe-Do you need another reason to love Elizabeth Warren? Okay, here's one. Because of a letter the Massachusetts senator wrote in July 2015 asking the government to "facilitate scientific research on the potential health benefits of marijuana"-which was signed by not one but two Oregon senators, Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden-the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) has announced they will decide by July if they plan to reschedule cannabis. The government has five different designated categories, or schedules, of drugs, and cannabis has always been listed as a Schedule I drug along with heroin and LSD, all of which are considered as having "no currently accepted medical use" and a "high potential for abuse." This current designation for weed has about as much credibility as a 1981 Afterschool Special called Timmy Shot Up Some Marijuana, Turned Gay, and Died.

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