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Motorcycle Gun Bill Becomes Law
Governor Kitzhaber has signed Gun Bill HB 2792 into law. That’s good news and bad news.

Oregon Firearms Federation

Salem, Oregon --(Ammoland.com)- 2792 clarifies lawful carry of firearms on motorcycles, snowmobiles and all terrain vehicles. The “short “ version follows.

As always, concealed handgun license holders can carry handguns any way they choose while on motorcycles. This was always so.

However,until this bill became law, there was no practical way for a person to legally transport a handgun on a motorcycle if they did not have a CHL. Now those without licenses can carry handguns on motorcycles if they are in a locked container or if they are equipped with a trigger lock.

This is a positive development.

In the past, it was unlawful to have a loaded firearm on a snowmobile or ATV. This applied to everyone, even those with concealed handgun licenses. One of the main problems with this law was that the term “loaded” was not defined. Could you have a magazine inserted in an auto loader if there was no round in the chamber? The law did not say. Now, with the enactment of 2792, this too has been clarified.

For the purposes of carry on snowmobiles and ATV’s “unloaded” means the following:

• If the firearm is a revolver, that there is no live cartridge in the chamber that is aligned with the hammer of the revolver;
• If the firearm is a muzzle-loading firearm, that the firearm is not capped or primed;
• or If the firearm is other than a revolver or a muzzle-loading firearm, that there is no live cartridge in the chamber.

Please note, the above restriction no longer applies to CHL holders, who may carry fully loaded firearms on snowmobiles or ATV’s . You may also carry concealed on snowmobiles and ATV’s without a CHL if you follow the same guidelines as are applied to motorcycles, meaning the gun must be in a locked container or be equipped with a trigger lock. Without a CHL you may carry the gun openly in the newly defined “unloaded” condition anyplace there are not local restrictions. The rules for motorcycles, snowmobiles and ATV’s are now much like the rules for cars and trucks

While these are good changes and ones we have been working on for some time, 2792 also had bad components. As you may know, in 2009 OFF crafted legislation to clean up Oregon’s laws on gun rights restoration for persons with past felony convictions. SB 603 corrected an error in Oregon law that allowed a person with a felony conviction to petition the court have his rights restored to buy a gun, but because of an anomaly in the law, that person could still not own it!. SB 603 fixed that and worked well for the short time it was in effect. Now, HB 2792 greatly restricts who may apply for rights restoration. Remember, this was not a law that gave anyone their rights back, it only allowed them to ask for their rights back. Some applied and were approved and some were not. The new system worked. Now, no one convicted of a “person felony” can apply for rights restoration. While many “person felonies” are serious crimes, some hardly seem like reason to disallow a person from ever seeking to have their rights restored. You can see a list of “person felonies” here.

About:
The Oregon Firearms Federation has proven itself to be Oregon’s only no compromise lobbying group, OFF takes the same tough stands and serves as a vehicle for educating gun owners, promoting their rights and when necessary, fighting the freedom haters in court. Visit: www.oregonfirearms.org

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Anti Gun Radical Senator Floyd Prozanski Continues to Trample Your Rights in Oregon
Conference Committee Caves In and Oregonians Suffer Quietly.

Oregon Firearms Federation

Salem, Oregon --(Ammoland.com)- HB 2792 was supposed to be a bill that recognized other state’s concealed handgun licenses.

After passing the House by a wide margin it was sent to the Senate where Senate Judiciary Chairman Floyd Prozanski “gut and stuffed” it so it was no longer recognizable.

Now, while the bill does contain language we sought to clarify the lawful carry of firearms on motorcycles, snowmobiles and ATV’s it also contains complex and vague language creating new restrictions on persons attempting to get their firearm’s rights restored.

Today the bill went to a “Conference Committee” to iron out differences between the House and Senate.

The committee members from the Senate side were Floyd Prozanski, Jackie Dingfelder and Doug Whitsett. The House members were Wayne Krieger and Jeff Barker. The entire committee voted unanimously to accept the “gut and stuffed” Senate version of the bill with one meaningless amendment. The amendment changes from three to one year, the amount of time that must transpire before those who may still apply for rights restoration must wait after leaving prison.

No one from the “pro-gun” side offered substantive pro-gun amendments.

We have no idea why the committee felt the need to make this change. While we have no objection to it, it serves no purpose, something we have repeatedly pointed out to committee members. Federal law still forbids anyone with a felony record from having his rights restored in Oregon for 15 years. So the amendment was a meaningless gesture that benefits no one.

So now, with the help of the House members of the conference committee, and the Republican Senate member, a message has been sent to Senator Prozanski that he can mangle or simply kill pro-gun bills with impunity.

Much will be said by legislators about the need to not “arm felons.” Many who supported the original bill that had no language about rights restoration,are fearful that this will become a campaign issue. But there are two important points to keep in mind. In 2009, the bill that allowed felons to seek rights restoration was drafted by Floyd Prozanski and it passed both Houses with no opposition. So “arming felons” was actually done in 2009, and no one lost a re-election campaign as a result. It’s a bogus issue.

Secondly, in spite of the “sky is falling” rhetoric by Prozanski, the law is working. Murderers and rapists are neither seeking nor receiving gun rights restoration. There simply is not a problem.

Before the law was changed in 2009 it was clear that many in the legislature were confused about what existing law said. It soon became clear that many were confused about what the correcting legislation did. In 2010, when Floyd Prozanski introduced legislation to reverse what he wrote in 2009 it was clear he did not understand what his new bill said. Now we have a cluttered, unneeded and confusing bill that accomplishes little and is likely to be misunderstood by most,

And every single word about recognizing other states’s concealed carry licenses is gone.
Today, Prozanski also led the floor debate to kill SB 347. 347 would have protected the privacy of CHL holders and victims of domestic violence. Prozanski and fellow Democrats voted to throw domestic violence victims under the bus just to make sure CHL holders got no protection.On this vote, a “nay” is a pro-gun vote.

As a result of that vote, 347 must be assigned to a conference committee of the type that just sold out to the anti-gunners in the Senate.

So while SB 347 awaits a conference committee, HB 2792 will go back to both Houses for a vote on whether to agree with the conference committee’s decision to go along with all the “gut and stuff” language added into it in the Senate.

We strongly urge you to contact both your House Rep and your State Senator and urge them to vote “No” on HB 2792 when it comes back to them. The bill no longer protects visitors to our state, is confusing and unneeded. You can reach both your House Rep and your State Senator here.

Please tell them that while you strongly supported the original bill, you cannot support a bill that has been used by anti-gunners to promote their own agenda.

About:
The Oregon Firearms Federation has proven itself to be Oregon’s only no compromise lobbying group, OFF takes the same tough stands and serves as a vehicle for educating gun owners, promoting their rights and when necessary, fighting the freedom haters in court. Visit: www.oregonfirearms.org

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