KWSO News 2/3/20

The continued push to ban all flavored nicotine vaping products in Oregon is moving to the Legislature. According to The Bulletin Senator Laurie Monnes Anderson’s bill would bar the sale of all “Flavored inhalant delivery system products” that taste like anything except tobacco. The vaping industry will fight the bill, even as it fought and beat Governor Kate Brown’s ban in October. Jason Weber, owner of Smokeless Solutions by Vape Crusaders in Roseburg sued the state after the governor’s ban on flavored nicotine products went into effect and within days, a judge put the ban on hold. The state suspended the ban altogether earlier this month and the judge dismissed the case. Weber said he has met with Monnes Anderson and other lawmakers to plead his case – that he has helped adults quit smoking. He has asked for smaller changes, such as requiring age verification technology at stores to make it harder to sell to people under 21. Monnes Anderson said she’s not moved by the industry’s arguments and plans to add a layer of regulation to her bill in an amendment that would create a statewide tobacco retailer licensing system.

An owner of a company that owns 19 private gambling rooms across Washington state on Thursday spoke in support of a bill that would authorize sports betting, including on mobile devices. Eric Persson, owner of Maverick Gaming, says people in Washington are already illegally betting on sports with bookies and off-shore companies. The hearing before the state Senate Labor and Commerce Committee involved a bill that would authorize Indian casinos, private card rooms and horse racing tracks to offer sports betting, both on-site and via mobile devices. It is competing with other bills that would limit sports betting to Indian casinos only, and only from within those casinos. None of the bills have been voted on yet.

The 2020 session of the Oregon Legislature kicks off today. KLCC’s Chris Lehman reports: “It’s a five-week session. That means lawmakers and lobbyists will be going full speed right out of the gate. It’s the first of the so-called “short sessions” for Roseburg Republican Representative Gary Leif [LEEF]. He says some lawmakers have told him it’s easy, since it goes by quickly compared to the five-month session in odd-numbered years. Gary Leif: “But I’ve also heard other people say it’s long and grueling hours, even though it’s short. So that’s to be determined. I’ll tell you after the session’s over.” Lawmakers will patch up the state budget and tackle other issues that they say can’t wait until the full session next year. Still to be determined is whether Senate Republicans will walk out in protest of a climate change bill. That would deny majority Democrats a quorum and bring a halt to legislative proceedings. I’m Chris Lehman in Salem.”

In Sports: Super Bowl 54 had the San Francisco 49ers battling Kansas City. San Francisco was trying to get their 6^th super bowl title, while Kansas City was making their 1^st appearance in 50 years, since they last won Super Bowl 4. The game went in to halftime tied at 10. Then the 49ers came out of halftime and scored 10 points in the 3^rd quarter to take a 20-10 lead. In the 4^th Quarter, it was all Patrick Mahomes and Kansas City as they scored 21 straight points to get the Super Bowl victory 31-20. Even though Mahomes threw 2 interceptions in the game, it was his late heroics in the 4^th quarter that got Kansas City the Super Bowl victory and earned him the Super Bowl MVP. In Local Sports: The Madras High School Lady Buffs Basketball hosted Molalla Friday and fell 50-41. Leading scorers were Jiana Smith-Francis with 13 points and DaRia White with 8. Buff Boys went to Molalla last Friday and came away victorious winning 47-34, led by Donnie Bagley with 19 points and Derrek Main with 10.

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