Ron May asks for marijuana discussion

A discussion about marijuana legalization will be on the agenda for the next city council meeting.

Portland City Council member Ron May during a brief meeting Monday asked that the topic be placed on the agenda for the next meeting, which is June 16.

May said he believes the legalization of marijuana in the state is coming eventually and he asked that the council consider sending a letter to the statehouse indicating that the city is open to it if the state government decides to go in that direction.

May, a former probation officer of 33 years, said he’s never used marijuana himself and doesn’t plan to. But he added that his views on the issue have shifted.

“When I first started, I was dead set against it,” he said. “Then over the years, things changed. I think it’s time that we change.”

Council member Dave Golden asked if May was referencing medical or recreational marijuana, or both. May responded that he’d suggest something similar to Ohio’s law that was passed via a ballot issue in 2023. It allows up to 2.5 ounces of cannabis for adult use and individuals to grow up to six marijuana plants for personal use.

May asked city attorney Wes Schemenaur about whether there will be action on the issue at the state level. (The next legislative session will begin in January.)

Schemenaur responded that it’s unclear but that the issue will likely be up for consideration in the coming year. Council member Matt Goldsworthy said in his conversations with legislators he does not expect legalization to get much traction.

May then asked Schemenaur for his opinion on marijuana legalization from the standpoint of his role as the elected county prosecutor.

“I enforce the law as it’s written,” he said. “If the legislature says it’s legal, then that’s the legislature’s prerogative. If they say it’s gonna continue to be illegal, I’m going to continue to prosecute it.”

May pointed out that marijuana is used for a variety of reasons, including pain control. He asked fellow council members Kent McClung, Mike Aker, Ashley Hilfiker, Golden and Goldsworthy, absent Michele Brewster, to talk to their constituents ahead of the discussion at the next council meeting.

The only item of business the council addressed during the meeting that lasted barely more than five minutes was the approval of payment of regular claims.