Today is the deadline for policy bills to move out of committee, and as SB 764, SB 797 and SB 868 were not scheduled for votes today, they are effectively dead for the rest of session; however, anti-gun legislators are already attempting to revive these bills by adding them on to other pieces of legislation as amendments, or potentially re-introducing them as priority bills to avoid these committee deadlines. At the request of state Senator Burdick, the Senate Judiciary Committee held a public hearing this morning on Senate Bill 719 and its -5 amendment, which seeks to add language mirroring Senate Bill 868 to the bill. Your NRA-ILA was present and testified in opposition.
The committee is set to reconvene at 5:00pm and they are likely to bring the -5 amendments up for a vote! If you haven’t done so already, please click the “Take Action” button below to contact the committee members in opposition to this bill and the -5 amendments!
Based on a California law enacted in 2014, the -5 amendment would create a so-called “Extreme Risk Protection Order” (ERPO) that could be obtained by a law enforcement officer, family member, or household member in an ex parte hearing to deprive someone of their Second Amendment rights without due process of the law.
By allowing a law enforcement officer, family member, or household member to seek the ERPO, the -5 amendment would allow people who are not mental health professionals, who may be mistaken, and who may only have minimal contact with the respondent to file a petition with the court and testify on the respondent’s state of mind. This ex parte order, which strips the accused of their Second Amendment rights, would be issued by a judge based on the brief statement of the petitioner. The accused would not be afforded the chance to appear in court to defend themselves against the allegations when the ERPO is issued. These orders may be issued without any allegations of criminal behavior.
In Oregon, people who pose a danger to themselves or others may be dealt with in a number of ways, depending on the circumstances. Under current law, every punitive measure which leads to a prohibition on firearm possession requires some type of judicial process, so people are not arbitrarily deprived of their liberty or their rights. The -5 amendment is unnecessary and goes far beyond existing law.
Additionally, we would like to remind everyone that the NRA-ILA Oregon Legislative Reception is tomorrow, April 19!
There is no cost to attend this event, but RSVP is required, as space is limited. For more details and to RSVP, please click here.
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