Murmurs: The State Police, Seeing Green.

1. Legal weed, schmegal weed: Oregon cops still want more money to go after marijuana crimes. The Oregon State Police have recently asked state lawmakers for a $3.9 million budget increase for 2015-17 to pay for 11 full-time troopers and detectives. That’s in addition to the $1.3 million the state police requested for a legal-pot enforcement budget earlier this year. The state police declined comment. The request follows a proposal by the Oregon Liquor Control Commission to create “peace officers” to patrol legal pot, investigate the black market, enforce taxes on weed purchases and stop sales to minors. (“Ganja Police,” WW, April 8, 2015). Rep. Peter Buckley (D-Ashland), co-chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee and a longtime champion of marijuana legalization, hasn’t yet discussed the request with the state police.

1. Voters will decide May 19 who gets to serve on the Portland Public Schools board. Maybe it’s a good thing for PPS Superintendent Carole Smith (who answers to the seven-member board) that she’s not on the ballot. A poll conducted in early April asked 400 probable Portland voters their opinion of Smith’s job performance. The result: 33 percent said the job she was doing was “good” or “excellent,” while 41 percent gave Smith a “just fair” or “poor” rating. More than one in four respondents said they didn’t know how to rate her or declined to do so. A PPS spokesman declined to comment.

1. Another top education official is also in the news: Two years after coming to town, Jeremy Brown, president of Portland Community College, is an applicant for a chancellor job in Arkansas. Brown is among 54 candidates seeking the position at Mid-South Community College in West Memphis, Ark., according to the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. In 2013, Brown replaced PCC president Preston Pulliams, who served for nine years. Brown declined to talk to WW about whether he’s being pushed out at PCC or if there’s another reason he is looking for a new job.

1. In her State of the State speech April 17, Gov. Kate Brown made a bold promise: The Legislature will approve a sweeping transportation package that includes higher gas taxes—a top priority for ex-Gov. John Kitzhaber. Republicans often go along with big transportation deals that include projects for their home districts. Despite controlling the House, Democrats need one Republican vote to reach the required supermajority for increasing taxes. House GOP members say Democrats have already pushed through a hidden gas tax—the low-carbon fuels standard, which critics say will raise gas prices. “Our caucus made clear we would not support raising the cost of fuel twice on Oregonians,” House GOP spokeswoman Kara Walker tells WW. “The transportation package is off the table.”

WWeek 2015