'Get out of our state': Kotek's message to fentanyl dealers, priorities in confronting drug crisis
Watch the complete interview with Gov. Tina Kotek near the bottom of this article
SALEM, Ore. (KOIN) -- Fentanyl is a potent synthetic opioid drug approved by the Food and Drug Administration for use as a pain relief and anesthetic. The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) said fentanyl is about 100 times more potent than morphine and 50 times more potent than heroin as an analgesic.
Two milligrams of fentanyl can be lethal depending on a person’s body size, tolerance and past usage. DEA analysis has found counterfeit pills ranging from .02 to 5.1 milligrams (more than twice the lethal dose) of fentanyl per tablet.
On the streets of downtown Portland, KOIN 6 got an exclusive look into how police are targeting and arresting drug dealers. Officers confiscated 115 grams of compressed powdered fentanyl on that mission. Officers said a 1 gram bag currently sells for $40.
If that batch wasn't cut with any other filler, it means 1 gram could contain roughly 500 potentially deadly doses and would shake out to about $0.08 a hit.
Fentanyl is plentiful just about everywhere, but especially in Oregon. Fixing the fentanyl problem is a top issue for Gov. Tina Kotek.
"The fact that if you want to get clean from fentanyl, you need another hit every hour. I mean, that is just changing the game of what services we need to provide," the governor told KOIN 6 News in a sit-down interview. "You try a pill, it can kill you."
Open drug use and dealing is disrupting daily life for many Oregonians. Kotek is vocal about banning open drug use and lawmakers are crafting a bill to address this in their current short legislative session.
"We don't want to see public use on our streets. We don't want you drinking on our streets, smoking marijuana, and we don't want you doing other serious drugs. So I want legislators to make the changes," Kotek said. "We need to keep that from happening. Legislators have to bring more tools to the fight. They need more tools for law enforcement to enforce going after dealers."
As part of the lawmakers' proposal to amend Measure 110 to recriminalize drug possession, individuals caught with a personal amount of drugs would be given the choice to get treatment instead of facing punishment.
Kotek wants to make sure those people really do have an option for treatment.
"The really important question here, if we go back to when voters approved Measure 110, people think this is a public health issue. They thought it was the right thing to do. We weren't set up for it and we haven't been successful.
"Whatever changes the legislature make -- make sure we have the timing right, make sure we have the resources. So when it comes to what they're talking about, what I call pre-booking diversion, before you go to jail, you'd have a diversion path. Is law enforcement ready for that? Are the courts ready for that? Are the service providers ready?
"I'd like to say today I know all the answers to those questions. I don't. But what I've said to legislators is, let's be ready. If you're going to do this, make sure we have the services in place. So that's what I'm working on on our end because that's what the state's role is."
But, she said, diverting any addiction treatment money from Measure 110 is a non-starter.
"That money from marijuana revenue has been transformative. So I would say to anyone who wants to play with the money, don't touch the money. Let's talk about what we can do better on the front end, because I think that's where the concerns are."
Numerous challenges exist within the drug crisis. People on the streets struggling with addiction also often suffer from severe mental illness.
Groundbreaking research from regional health care and homeless groups suggests there needs to be an immediate addition of at least 250 psychiatric beds. The governor is aware of that.
"We have to make sure that when someone in a mental health crisis, in particular needs acute care beds in a hospital, we have to have them. We are short. It's also the most expensive end of the spectrum.
"Ideally, someone is in there for a very short amount of time, and then there's a step-down facility. So you have to focus on the beds and the hospitals, and we need our hospital partners to step up to help us do that -- and have those step down facilities.
"I think the key is you can't focus on just one part. If we just put all our money into psych beds at hospitals, then we'd be like, now what? Right? So we have to do a little bit on each part of the system to make sure it's working for folks."
Parents in Oregon have shared stories with KOIN 6 about how they can't get their adult children with mental illness into treatment. Ultimately, they become homeless and addicted to hard drugs. The inability for families to access involuntary civil commitment for loved ones adds another dimension to the visible drug crisis unfolding on Oregon's streets.
About 99% of people in the Oregon State Hospital are there for criminal matters. Kotek said taking up the issue of involuntary civil commitment is something to do in 2025.
"The (Oregon) First Lady is a social worker who's been in the field, who has watched people who are suffering, who need to have an opportunity to get into treatment for whatever the particularly serious mental illness. And the bar is just so high, and we have to do it carefully, but I think we have to provide some different tools to get people help. And the services have to be there."
The drug crisis looks different for everyone. Kotek said the top concern is preventing the loss of lives.
"I just had a text the other day from a friend, someone I've worked with a long time who said, 'My son died last fall.' We worked together. He was my best friend. He died from a fentanyl overdose. So there’s real hurt out there. There's frustration that people can't get the help they need. So what I say to folks is we are listening. We understand people need help and we want to be as strategic as possible to provide that care."
The governor also said she's working on ways to squeeze the supply of fentanyl to possibly choke off the demand.
"I think it's unusual that a governor with the interest of the mayor, has brought in state police to work with Portland police to try to get dealers off the street and try to handle it at the street level. We've been talking with our federal partners. This is a federal, state, local issue.
"We want to say to the folks who want to sell, we want to make it really uncomfortable for you to sell in Portland and to sell in the state of Oregon. We don't want you here. Get out of our state and we're going to make it as hard as possible for you to be here. But it is difficult, right? It's going to take some time.
"I do believe we need to have a conversation in 2025 with the legislature about what more can the state police do statewide so they can be that frontline of saying no to the drug dealers. And the lessons we're learning from Portland, I think, will be helpful."
Considering how deadly and dangerous fentanyl is, KOIN 6 wanted to know if she's considering increasing the penalties for drug traffickers and dealers.
The governor said she wants "to make sure we can catch 'em and actually penalize what they're doing. I haven't actually looked at the actual penalties involved. What I've been hearing is we need the tools that the legislature is going to give, so you can actually prosecute. We're starting there, but we have to figure this out."
In late January, Gov. Kotek declared a 90-day fentanyl state of emergency with both Multnomah County and the City of Portland in an effort to align tactics. She thinks local leaders can build on that momentum and then its success can be replicated statewide.
Oregon State Troopers will continue to help PPB officers arrest drug dealers.
But as far as treatment goes, Gov. Kotek thinks, realistically, it will take 3-5 years to build up the continuum of care for addicts.
Asked if she's thought about appointing a drug czar, Kotek said it's not out of the question.
"I'm going to do whatever it takes to make progress. It's unacceptable when you have this kind of 'Who did this, who's doing what?' We don't have time for that."
Watch: Full interview with Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek
What she wants Oregon lawmakers to do is ask hard questions and make every dollar count.
For now, she will focus on her priorities and the fundamentals: Ensure sufficient treatment beds, bolster the workforce with adequate pay, and prevent young people from experimenting with fentanyl and other street drugs in the first place.