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IV. PUBLIC HEARING: An Ordinance Concerning the Penalty for Violation of Section 4.240 of the Eugene Code, Use and Possession of Less than One Ounce of Marijuana; Amending Section 4.990 of the Eugene Code, 1971 Marilyn Nelson, Court Administrator, provided the staff report. She said the proposal was to raise the financial penalty of possession for less than an ounce of marijuana from $100 to $250. She said the increase in the penalty would make it the same as the penalty for Minor in Possession of Alcohol. She said the intent of the increased penalty was to provide more of a financial incentive for individuals to participate in a new, Iow cost diversion program. Mayor Torrey opened the public hearing. Judge Wayne Allen, 777 Pearl Street, said the intent of the increased penalty was to help build on the success of the "Busted" education program which had been established in cooperation with the Substance Abuse p Prevention Program at the University of Oregon. He said the program had been very successful in terms of participation since most people preferred to go through the diversion program and were then able to make choices based on education rather than beliefs. Judge Allen said the $100 dollar penalty for possession of less than an ounce of marijuana was not enough because the cost of the diversion program was $90. He said when people were faced with the choice of a $90 diversion program or a $100 penalty they chose to pay the extra ten dollars. He said the planned diversion program would be a one-day program and would be useful particularly for students who, if convicted, would be ineligible for further student loans. He stressed that the increase was not to raise revenue but to make a workable diversion program. Todd Dalotto, Compassion Center, 1055 Bertelson Road, said his nonprofit organization provided support services and education to medical marijuana patients. He remarked that the Oregon Medical Marijuana Program had a fee of $150, which was prohibitively expensive for some patients, that provided them legal protection. He said most patients who were medically disabled were also financially disabled and added that he had seen many who could not afford the card who were still using marijuana and were subject to sanction by law enforcement. He opined that there should be no fine or penalty for possession of under an ounce of marijuana. He said an incentive for diversion was moot for patients who used marijuana to ease their pain and would continue to use it since it improved the quality of their life. Mr. Dalotto noted that Europe and Canada were all moving toward decriminalization of marijuana for medical and recreational purposes. He remarked that Eugene was a progressive community that needed to be following in that direction instead of moving in the wrong way by increasing penalties for possession. He suggested that there be a discussion of removing all penalties for simple possession of marijuana and urged the council to vote against any increases of penalties. Alan Jackson, Whiteaker neighborhood, said the laws against marijuana were based on inaccurate science and medical misinformation. He said the law would only affect the people who could least afford to pay the penalty since, in his perception, it was Iow-income people who were most often targeted by police. He urged the council not to pass the ordinance. Dan Koozer, PO Box 10957, Eugene, noted that the State of Oregon had voted down re- criminalization of less than an ounce of marijuana by a wide margin. He remarked that there should be no penalty for less than an ounce. MINUTES--Eugene City Council January 13, 2003 Page 7 Regular Meeting