A federal court today held that Oregon’s Measure 119 is preempted by federal law and violates the First Amendment of the US Constitution. Measure 119, passed late last year, requires certain OLCC marijuana licensees to enter into a labor peace agreement (“LPA”) with a union in order to obtain license application approval (renewal or change of ownership). See our previous posts regarding M119, here and here. A copy of the Opinion and Order can be viewed here and the Judgment here. Our hats off to the brilliant attorneys at Fisher Phillips, who spearheaded the lawsuit.
Technically, the Court permanently enjoined OLCC from enforcing Measure 119 against the two plaintiffs in the case, but, based on the reasoning underpinning the court’s decision, we expect the OLCC to cease enforcement for all applicable licensees.
Retailer, processor, and laboratory licensees and applicants should closely monitor their inboxes for an OLCC bulletin acknowledging the Court’s order and formally repealing the LPA requirement.
