Oregon governor declares fentanyl state of emergency in downtown Portland

Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek (D) declared a state of emergency in Portland on Tuesday for a rising number of fentanyl deaths as some state Democrats move to roll back a drug decriminalization law.

Kotek was joined by Portland’s mayor and county chair for the announcement, which establishes an emergency command center for drug overdose response and prevention for at least 90 days.

“Our country and our state have never seen a drug this deadly addictive, and all are grappling with how to respond,” the governor said in a statement. “The next 90 days will yield unprecedented collaboration and focused resources targeting fentanyl and provide a roadmap for next steps.”

The emergency declarations were a recommendation from a Portland task force last year, aimed at revitalizing the city’s downtown.

The center will be used to “refocus existing resources,” Kotek’s office said, including through data collection and response coordination between local, county and state governments.

Oregon has struggled with increasing overdoses in recent months, specifically from synthetic opioids, causing backlash against a 2020 law that decriminalized small amounts of most drugs. 

The state is dealing with the largest increase in synthetic overdose deaths in the country and the third highest of all overdose deaths, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

A proposal to roll back parts of the decriminalization law has gained bipartisan support in the state Legislature. The new measure would re-criminalize the possession of some hard drugs and force those arrested for possession into addiction counseling.