Oregon Democrats' legislative priorities come alive as Republican frustrations rise

Top legislative priorities for Oregon Democrats are still moving forward as the 2019 Legislature enters its second half, although Republicans have begun considering ways to slow the process in protest of a few contentious bills.

On the Senate side, Republican lawmakers have been inundated with calls from gun rights activists calling on them to stop Senate Bill 978 — the preeminent gun bill this session.

SB 978 would:

* Require safe gun storage and place liability on gun owners if a gun is stolen, but not reported, and used to injure a person or property;
* outlaw untraceable and undetectable firearms;
* grant local authorities the power to regulate firearm access in public buildings;
* allow retailers to set higher minimum purchasing age restrictions;
* make hospitals provide firearm injury data to the state.

The bill moved out of the Senate Judiciary Committee Tuesday, tweaked somewhat from its introduced version, including the removal of the bill's emergency clause, but not enough to earn the vote of any of the three Republicans on the committee.

Read more: https://www.statesmanjournal.com/story/news/politics/2019/04/15/democrat-priorities-republican-frustrations-oregon-legislature-2019/3449318002/
(Salem Statesman Journal)