H.B. 3076, which would have created a new state licensing program for gun dealers in Oregon, died in the House, but another, S.B. 243, is heading back to the Senate.
SALEM, Oregon — This week in the Oregon Legislature, while one gun control bill did not make it past the House, another is on its way back to the Senate.
House Bill 3076, which would have created a new state licensing program for gun dealers in Oregon, died in the House.
“HB 3076 would have severely hampered gun dealers in Oregon from selling guns,” rural House Republicans said in a news release celebrating the outcome. “We may be in the minority, but our impact is undeniable.”
But Republicans were less enthusiastic over the passage of Senate Bill 243, which bans the sale and possession of rapid-fire activators and also lets local governments decide if guns should be allowed inside “official meeting locations.”
Rapid-fire activators are devices such as bump stocks that modify semi-automatic guns to allow them to be fired at a speed closer to that of a fully automatic weapon. Bump stocks were once banned on the federal level, but that ban was overturned by the Supreme Court last year.
The Multnomah County District Attorney’s Office said such devices have been used in deadly mass shootings, such as in Uvalde and Las Vegas. House Republicans countered that HB 3076 weakens the Second Amendment.
The bill also includes a provision on the stalled Measure 114, saying that if a court ruling upholds the law that voters narrowly approved in 2022, charges under the measure will not be pursued until lawmakers have a chance to review the measure and all of its trimmings.
Oregon House Democrats said that part of SB 243 is meant to protect responsible gun owners, a group that state Republicans often argue are hurt the most by gun control bills in Salem. Some, like Senate Republican Leader Daniel Bonham, R-The Dalles, have threatened to walk out over it.