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Tom Mallams recall, Klamath County commission, Oregon (2016)
| Klamath County Commission recall |
|---|
| Officeholders |
| Recall status |
| See also |
| Recall overview Political recall efforts, 2016 Recalls in Oregon Oregon recall laws County commission recalls Recall reports |
An effort in Klamath County, Oregon, to recall Commissioner Tom Mallams from his position as chair of the county board of commissioners was officially launched on September 22, 2015. Petitioners failed to turn in enough signatures by the deadline on December 21, 2015, and this recall did not go to a vote.
Ilo and Melissa Ferroggiaro filed this recall petition against Tom Mallams based on alleged state water rule violations at his ranch. The petitioners also alleged that Tom Mallams abused his power.[1]
The Ferroggiaros were owners of a medical marijuana dispensary called Laughing Lotus Farms. They filed the recall petition paperwork several hours after the Klamath County Board of Commissioners voted to ban dispensaries, producers and wholesale vendors of medical and recreational marijuana.[1]
Despite the recall effort, on October 26, 2015, Mallas filed to run for re-election in 2016. The primary election was held on May 17, 2016. Mallams said, “I just want people to know what my intentions are. I enjoy it. Even with all the controversy and contention, it's extremely rewarding.” A representative of the Klamath County clerk's office stated that Mallams could run for in the board of commissioners election in 2016 even if this recall effort proved successful. Mallams faced four challengers in the May 2016 primary.[2]
Background
Marijuana ban
On September 22, 2015, the Klamath County Board of Commissioners voted unanimously to ban the production and sale of both medical and recreational marijuana within the county. In 2014, Oregon voters approved marijuana legalization through Measure 91. In Klamath County, however, 56 percent of electors voted "no" on the statewide measure. Marijuana use was not prohibited by the county's ordinance.[3]
Referendum petition
Shortly after the county passed the ban on marijuana production and marijuana dispensaries, Ilo and Melissa Ferroggiaro, owners of a dispensary called Laughing Lotus Farms, filed two petitions with the county elections office. One petition for the recall of the chair of the county board of commissioners, Tom Mallams, and one petition for a veto referendum against the county's marijuana ordinance. Petitioners turned in more than enough signatures to qualify this referendum for the ballot and it was scheduled to go before voters on May 17, 2016.[4][5]
Water rights issue
Tom Mallams was the owner of a 150-acre farm. The grounds provided by recall petitioners focused on an issue with water regulations that came up in July 2015. The Oregon Water Resources Department (OWRD) sent several shut-off orders to Mallams ordering him to reduce or entirely stop water use from certain wells. Instead of complying with the orders, the first of which was sent on July 3, 2015, Mallams filed a petition for review with the circuit court of Marion County on August 31, 2015. This petition suspended the process to determine penalties for Mallams failure to comply with the orders.[6]
Past recalls
Including this recall effort, there were at least six recall campaigns targeting Klamath County commissioners between 2011 and 2015. Tom Mallams was targeted along with Jim Bellet in 2013, but the recall effort did not go to a vote.
Recall supporters
A Recall Tom Mallams website was created to advertise the signature gathering campaign.[6]
Recall supporter arguments
Recall supporters argued that Tom Mallams violated a water law and ignored several regulation notices. Some recall supporters are also behind a veto referendum effort to rescind the county's anti-marijuana ordinance for which Mallams voted in favor.
Attorney Richard Fairclo said, “For him to ignore the water law is extremely upsetting. It flaunts the law. Society works when laws are obeyed and enforced. Our public officials are not above the law. It was in Mr. Mallams’ selfish interest to violate the water call and to the detriment of his neighbors.”[6]
Recall opponents
Mallams responded to the recall effort by saying, “I think it's helping. It's bringing more awareness. I'm always glad to see more awareness, whether it's positive or negative. It gets people involved. It gets them asking questions.”[2]
Path to the ballot
- See also: Laws governing recall in Oregon
To qualify the recall for the ballot, petitioners needed to submit 3,426 valid signatures by December 21, 2015. On November 20, 2015, Melissa Ferroggiaro announced that petitioners had collected about 1,400 signatures. The group failed to collect the required number of signatures by the signature submission deadline. According to Ilo and Melissa Ferroggiaro, they collected about 2,300 signatures for the recall.[4][7]
The signature requirement for a recall in Oregon is 15 percent of the votes cast for governor at the preceding gubernatorial election in the electoral district of the targeted official.
See also
- Recall campaigns in Oregon
- Political recall efforts, 2016
- County commission recalls
- Oregon Legalized Marijuana Initiative, Measure 91 (2014)
External links
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Tom Mallams recall. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Herald and News, "Mallams targeted for recall," September 23, 2015
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Herald and News, "Commissioner Mallams files for re-election," October 17, 2015
- ↑ Mail Tribune, "Klamath County bans medical, recreational marijuana sales," September 23, 2015
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Herald and News, "Recall, marijuana petitions still collecting signatures," November 20, 2015
- ↑ Herald and News, "Marijuana referendum makes May ballot," December 18, 2015
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 Recall Tom Mallams, "Home," accessed November 24, 2015
- ↑ Ballotpedia staff writer Josh Altic, "Email correspondence with Ilo and Melissa Ferroggiaro," December 24, 2015
