A piece of legislation responding to the Trump administration’s proposed crackdown of legal cannabis has made significant headway in Oregon, and needs only the signature of Governor Kate Brown to become law.
The proposal would require the state’s cannabis retailers to destroy all customer information within 30 days and to halt the collection of new customer data. Currently, Oregon’s pot shops record personal information and buying habits to better serve their clientele and offer promotions such as birthday freebies.
According to the Associated Press, the bill to protect that information passed with a 53-5 vote in the Oregon House, with support from both sides of the aisle.
"Given the immediate privacy issues … this is a good bill protecting the privacy of Oregonians choosing to purchase marijuana," State Rep. Carl Wilson, a Republican sponsor of the bill, said.
Colorado and Alaska already have legislation in place protecting customer information, and Washington retailers delete the information on their own volition.
The Oregon bill is just one in a number of state and federal proposals aimed at protecting the country’s recreational cannabis industry from Sessions and the Trump administration.
And while Sessions hasn’t still hasn’t made any concrete statements about his plans for cannabis enforcement, there’s no time better than the present to start protecting cannabis customers.
Governor Brown is expected to sign the customer protection bill into law shortly.
