Oregon eyes pot privacy
Lawmakers look to keep user info under wraps
SALEM, Ore. — Oregon state lawmakers who fear heightened marijuana enforcement by federal agents have overwhelmingly approved a proposal to protect pot users from having their identities or cannabis-buying habits THE LAW from being divulged by the shops that sell pre-rolled joints and “magic” brownies.
The bipartisan proposal would protect pot consumers by abolishing a common business practice in this Pacific Northwest state where marijuana shops often keep a digital paper trail of their recreational pot customers’ names, birth dates, addresses and other personal information. The data is gleaned from their driver’s licenses, passports or whatever other form of ID they present at the door to prove they’re at least 21 as required by law.
The data is often collected without customers’ consent or knowledge. It is stored away as proprietary information the businesses use mostly for marketing and customer service purposes, such as linking their driver’s license number with every pot product they buy so dispensary employees are better able to help out during their next visit.
The measure that passed 53-5 now heads to Democratic Gov. Kate Brown, who is expected to sign it into law.
It would bring Oregon statutes in line with similar laws already in place in Alaska and Colorado and self-imposed industry standards in Washington state — the only other three U.S. states where recreational cannabis is actively sold in shops to consumers of legal age. Upon the bill’s signing into law, Oregon pot retailers would have 30 days to destroy their customers’ data from their databases and would be banned from such record-keeping in the future.