Measure 110 Audit Finds Gaps in Data, Delays in Funding
According to a new audit, after a slow rollout, Measure 110 funding is having an impact on Oregon’s drug addiction crisis. But there are still many challenges when it comes to the state’s law that legalized small amounts of drugs and ramped up funding for treatment.
Portland Police Association President Aaron Schmautz says police are seeing on the streets every day. “This person is in need and asking for help.”
And they see what they think is the impact of Measure 110.
“A big part of Measure 110 was the approach to navigating disparate outcomes in our society to addiction issues. And this is where partnership is so important because those disparate outcomes connect to law enforcement in a very significant way. And so us having partners to hand off the work, you know, I can call Fernando on the street and say, hey, I have someone who’s suffering from addiction,” he said, at a recent Portland City Club discussion of Measure 110 and drug deregulation.
The Oregon Secretary of State’s latest audit of Measure 110 finds the state has successfully distributed more than $260 million to drug treatment service providers. But it found gaps in data that could show how effective that funding’s been, and that delays have hurt the programs that are supposed to help the addicted. The Measure 110 oversight council expects to award another $150 million through June of 2025. And the Secretary of State expects to do another audit measuring how effective the law’s been, also in 2025.
