Rep. Elmer: Measure 110 audit

House Republican Leader Lucetta Elmer Responds to State Audit on Measure 110
By House Republican Leader and State Representative Lucetta Elmer,

SALEM, Ore. — Today, House Republican Leader Lucetta Elmer (R-McMinnville) released the following statement in response to the audit released by the Secretary of State showing Ballot Measure 110 (2020) — which aimed to replace criminalization of substance use disorder with a public health approach — failed due to poor strategies, inadequate data, and wasted resources:

The Secretary of State’s audit confirms what too many Oregon families have already lived through: Measure 110 failed to deliver on its promise to help people struggling with addiction, and the state failed to provide the leadership and oversight needed to prevent that failure.

Measure 110 was sold as a compassionate, public health approach. Instead, it became a system with no clear direction, no meaningful accountability, and no urgency — even as overdose deaths continued to rise. In 2023 alone, more than 1,700 Oregonians died from drug overdoses. While overdose deaths declined in nearly every other state, Oregon fell further behind.

The audit makes clear that the Oregon Health Authority lacked stability, coordination, and measurable goals. Funds were distributed without consistent oversight, data was insufficient to show whether programs were working, and services were not integrated into Oregon’s broader behavioral health system. The result was wasted time, wasted resources, and lives lost that did not need to be.

This was not a failure of compassion — it was a failure of leadership.

Oregonians expect their government to act when policies aren’t working, especially when lives are on the line. Instead, warning signs were ignored, repeated requests for improvement went unanswered, and accountability was absent.

We owe it to families, first responders, and people battling addiction to do better. A public-health approach must be focused on saving lives, getting people into treatment, and delivering results — not protecting a broken system. Oregonians deserve urgency, transparency, and leadership that is willing to admit when something isn’t working and course-correct immediately.

Oregon Catalyst