Oregon Second Amendment advocates are raising the alarm over what they consider an attempted end run around the courts to impose fortified ballot Measure 114-style gun control through legislation.
On April 4, the Oregon State Senate Judiciary Committee voted Senate Bill 348 (SB 348) out of committee and onto the floor of the legislature for a vote and a referral to the Joint Ways and Means Committee.
The committee received written testimony from hundreds of Oregonians opposing the law, with fewer than 200 expressing support during a March 27 hearing.
The bill would enhance some of the requirements of ballot Measure 114, approved by voters in November 2022 but now tied up in the courts. The Oregon Firearms Federation executive director told The Epoch Times that SB 348 isn’t just Measure 114 codified.
“This is considerably worse,” Kevin Starrett said.
The bill retains Measure 114’s permit requirements but raises the application fee from $65 to $150. The renewal fee is increased from $50 to $110. It also extends the time limit for an agent to approve a permit from 30 to 60 days.
It keeps the so-called high-capacity magazine ban and the safety-course requirement. It adds a 72-hour waiting period before the transfer of a firearm from a dealer to a buyer can take place.
Starrett pointed out that the magazine ban is retroactive to Dec. 8, 2022. So, anyone who cannot prove they purchased their magazines before that date, would be violating the law.
He said that magazines generally don’t have serial numbers or unique identifying characteristics.
“Even if you had a receipt, what would that prove?” Starrett asked.
In addition to the above requirements, Measure 114 also requires state police to compile a firearms database. This is also in the bill.
Measure 114 Still in Court
On Dec. 2, 2022, Gun Owners of America (GOA), the Gun Owner’s Foundation (GOF), Gliss Asmussen, and Joseph Arnold sued in Harney County Circuit Court to block Measure 114 because it violates the U.S. Constitution’s Second Amendment.Starrett said he has never seen a situation like this.
“We don’t really know what effect this will have on the existing lawsuit,” Starrett said. “This bill was drafted to try to undermine those lawsuits.”
The Gun Owner’s Foundation is the non-profit legal arm of Gun Owners of America and a party to the lawsuit. Its spokesman, Sam Paredes, said SB 348 doesn’t end the fight.
“These radical anti-gun lawmakers just don’t seem to be getting the memo, and for that matter, they don’t seem too interested in protecting the rights of their own citizens guaranteed by both the U.S. and their state Constitution.
‘This Will Save Lives’
Measure 114 was supported by Lift Every Voice Oregon. Calls to the group’s office and its chairman, The Rev. Mark Knutson, were not returned by press time.Last December, Knutson told The Epoch Times that the measure did not violate the Second Amendment and would not take away anyone’s firearms.
He said Lift Every Voice Oregon wanted to ensure everyone’s rights were protected and communities were kept safe.
“This will save lives,” Knutson said last December.
