Measure 114 — Oregon’s newest gun control law — will go into effect sooner than some people may have thought.
Oregon State Police say they were notified by the Secretary of State’s Office that the measure will take effect on December 8, not January 15 as some — including law enforcement — have stated.
The Secretary of State’s Office told Central Oregon Daily News that under the state constitution, “an initiative or referendum measure becomes effective 30 days after the day on which it is enacted or approved by a majority of the votes cast thereon.”
Technically, the measure was approved the day people voted on it — November 8. So it takes effect December 8.
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OSP says it’s been working with local law enforcement agencies to implement the law.
The Oregon Hunters Association outlined what’s next now that the date has been set.
“Knowing that it’s now December 8, one, I think it gives a sense of finality and realism to the fact that this is going to be law in Oregon and, two, it really underscores the fact that this is going to be put in place before we have a permit to purchase system and effectively close down firearm sales,” said Amy Patrick with the Oregon Hunters Assocation.
Patrick tells us that OHA is aware that several retailers plan on ending firearm sales on December 8 out of caution. One of those, OHA says, is Sportsmen’s Warehouse which has a store in Bend.
Here is more from OSP’s announcement:
The Oregon State Police (OSP) is aware that the public has many questions regarding Ballot Measure 114. The Oregon Secretary of State’s office notified OSP that Ballot Measure 114 will go into effect at 12:00 a.m. on December 8, 2022. The Oregon State Police is working very closely with the Department of Justice, the Oregon State Sheriffs’ Association and the Oregon Association Chiefs of Police to assess the required processes that need to be completed to implement this law.
For the month of November 2022, approximately 63% of the requests received into the OSP Firearms Instant Check System (FICS) unit have been approved. The remaining transactions must be evaluated by an OSP employee to determine what caused the person to be kicked out of the automated process. If applicable a manual correction can be made, and the application can be approved.
Here are some important notes to consider when submitting for a Firearms purchase or transfer that could exclude you from the automated process:
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- If you have ever been arrested or convicted of a crime in Oregon or any other state.
- If you have incomplete or incorrect information listed on federal ATF Form 4473
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- Potential Fix- Double-check the information for accuracy.
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- If your registered DMV address does not match the address listed on federal ATF Form 4473
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- Potential Fix- Update your personal address with DMV.
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This unit has been working through these extreme firearms request volumes and will continue to process them as quickly as possible.
The FICS unit’s hours of operation is set in Oregon Revised Statute (ORS), and largely determined by retail hours. FICS is open and processing background checks from 8:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m., seven days a week 363 days a year with only Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day off.
For more information about the Oregon State Police’s Firearms Instant Check System (FICS) including how to complete a Firearm Pre-Purchase Self-Assessment Questionnaire click here:
https://www.oregon.gov/osp/programs/cjis/Pages/Firearms-Instant-Check-System.aspx
