Anna Staver

Statesman Journal

Oregonians have legalized the recreational sale and use of marijuana.

"With Oregon and D.C. coming on board, it's clear that Colorado and Washington voting to legalize in 2012 was no anomaly," said Tom Angell, chairman of the Marijuana Majority. "The trend is clear: Marijuana prohibition is coming to an end."

The results come following a campaign where only Yes on Measure 91 ads ran on television, and the campaign outspent legalization opponents 26 to 1.

"I guess what really upsets me as a sheriff is that outside money can maybe buy an election," said Tom Bergin, the Clatsop County Sheriff and member of the No on 91 campaign. "In this day in age and in this country people need to be more informed and not just listen to what they hear on the TV."

Oregon was the first state to decriminalize the possession of small amounts of marijuana, but voters rejected legalizing cannabis 55 percent to 45 percent in 2012.

That effort, lead by Paul Stanford, received little financial support from national marijuana advocacy organizations — which called the initiative poorly written.

The Yes on 91 campaign leaders said they learned from those mistakes and call their initiative a "sober" approach to legalization. Their measure placed limits on personal possession, sets the age at 21 rather than 18 and bans public consumption.

The new law will allow a household to have up to 8 ounces of marijuana and to cultivate up to four plants. A person could carry up to 1 ounce with them.

It also gives the Oregon Liquor Control Commission authority to oversee and regulate recreational sales — which won't start until January 2016.

Recreational sales would be regulated much in the way the commission regulates wine and beer rather than alcohol because the state wouldn't own or distribute marijuana products.

Recreational marijuana will be taxed at $1.50 a gram or $35 an ounce, according to the initiative. That money would be used for schools, law enforcement, drug treatment programs and mental health programs.

Measure 91 places the state in control of taxation, but the state could face a legal battle with dozens of Oregon cities and town that have passed their own local sales taxes for marijuana.

Across the country, preliminary results show the U.S. territory of Guam poised to legalize medical marijuana while Florida rejected its proposal.

Voters in Alaska and Washington D.C. are also voting on recreational legalization measures. Voters in our nation's capitol legalized marijuana possession while results from Alaskan are not clear yet.