He says a cannabis-business owner used campaign donations as “leverage,” to “have him pushed out of office” when his work on Oregon’s marijuana industry got in her way.
By Lynne Terry, Oregon Capital Chronicle
Gov. Tina Kotek, a Democrat, was under pressure from recovery activists to remove the head of Oregon Liquor and Cannabis Commission because of its support for the alcohol industry.
Mike Marshall, executive of Portland’s Oregon Recovers told the Capital Chronicle Tuesday that, after Kotek won the election, he repeated his request to remove Steve Marks as executive director of the agency for liquor and cannabis.
Marshall, in a press release, said that “most everyone in public health wanted Steve Marks gone.” Marshall accused Marks of not doing enough during his tenure in Oregon to curb the rise in alcoholism. “He never once convened a discussion, much less took action, during the 13 years he was in office to reduce alcohol-related hospitalizations and deaths. He ignored the OLCC’s legislative mandate, under the Liquor Control Act, to protect Oregonians and turned it into a state-funded agency promoting alcohol consumption.
Marshall told the Capital Chronicle in an email that he had spoken to Kotek mid-October, after hosting a fundraiser at his house for her. He then met with her aide in December and reiterated the message of Marks’ firing.
Marshall wrote “Nothing in writing” while on a flight.
Marks notification that Marks intends to sue over his dismissal prompted Marks’s statements. He sent a letter to the Department of Administrative Services, stating that he intended to sue for damages. Willamette Week first reported the letter. It stated that Kotek’s chief of Staff and Berri Leslie of the Department of Administrative Services told Marks that Kotek wanted to get rid of him at the end of January. Marks resigned from the OLCCC in February, after the Attorney General’s Office warned him to step down. The agency would then consider Marks’ status on February 15, if he did not.
Marks has resigned as a member of the Board on February 13.
The letter stated that “Governor Kotek has never provided – and she still does not provide – any reason for removing Marks from his position. Marks also received no notice of or chance to contest this action.”
In the letter, it was stated that he had been forced to leave because Rosa Cazares owned a large chain of cannabis stores. The letter stated that Cazares was opposed to the regulation of cannabis by the agency under Marks.
The letter stated that in 2018, the agency for liquor and cannabis cited a cannabis firm linked to Cazares as having mishandled nearly 150 pounds marijuana, which could have allowed it to be diverted onto the black market. Cazares, along with her partner Aaron Mitchell, poured thousands of dollars in the campaigns of Democratic officials before the dispute was resolved, according to the letter. Kotek, the newly elected secretary of State, and Shemia Faga were also among those who benefited. Fagan , who was secretary of state at the time, resigned from her position earlier this year due to a lucrative job that she had obtained through Cazares.
The letter states that Cazares “used these campaign contributions to push Marks out of office” when his work regarding Oregon’s marijuana industry was in the way.
Kotek has said that his ouster had nothing to do with Cazares or Mitchell and that she simply wanted new leadership. Kotek has said his ouster had nothing to do with Cazares or Mitchell and that she simply wanted new leadership, according to The Oregonian/OregonLive.
Marshall stated in his release that he had pressured Kotek into removing Marks because he supported the alcohol industry, and did little to curb Oregon’s alcohol abuse crisis. According to a ECONorthwest report, excessive alcohol consumption in 2019 cost Oregon nearly $5 billion. According to the Oregon Health Authority, in 2020 alcohol-related death rates will reach 50 per 100,000.
Marshall stated that the agency under Marks worked to boost the alcohol industry, rather than protecting public health. In his release, Marshall noted that the Oregon Liquor and Cannabis Commission stems from Oregon Liquor Control Act which aims at preventing alcohol addiction, promoting moderation and protecting the safety, welfare and the health of Oregonians.
The release stated that “only after these three conditions are met will the state’s policy encourage the development and growth of industry.” Steve Marks, OLCC president, rewrote the mission statement of the OLCC in direct violation of the legislative mandate. The new mission reads: “OLCC’s Mission is to support businesses and public safety and to improve community livability by educating and enforcing liquor and marijuana laws.”
The release stated that the OLCC was not in compliance with the law because its current mission, which focuses on supporting businesses, and does not mention preventing abuses, or protecting health.
Marks’s resignation was accompanied by an investigation into the scandal in which Marks and others from his agency used their influence to get bottles of exclusive Bourbon. Kotek claimed that the scandal had nothing to do either with his ouster.
William Gary, Marks’s lawyer, from the Eugene law firm Harrang Long, stated that the former director of liquor and cannabis suffered “substantial non-economic and economic damages” due to his dismissal.
In the letter, Marks said he may sue Oregon for defamation and wrongful termination. He also stated that he could file a lawsuit over federal civil rights laws, Oregon employment laws including whistleblower laws, as well as laws against misuse of power to gain personal benefit. The letter does not say how much Marks wants in damages.
This article was originally published by Oregon Capital Chronicle.
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The post Former Oregon Marijuana Regulator Claims He Was Ousted By Governor At The Behest Of Cannabis Owner first appeared on Marijuana Moment.
