From Joshua Brown, Tillamook County Sheriff
Oregon Voters’ Pamphlets are now arriving in the mail. As always, I urge you to read the entirety of each measure before casting your vote. I take my position as a nonpartisan elected official very seriously, therefore I seldom speak publicly in support of, or opposition to, candidates, measures, or petitions. However, on this November’s ballot, there is one measure that I feel compelled to address personally. The petition is called the “Reduction of Gun Violence Act,” otherwise referred to as Measure 114.
Basically, Measure 114 seeks to do two things: limit magazine capacities to no more than ten rounds and mandates that a new permit would be required for firearm purchase.
I oppose Measure 114 as written, as I believe it is misleading, poses constitutional issues, and places additional, and unrealistic, personnel and financial burdens on police agencies and Sheriff’s Offices that are already stretched to critical staffing levels. I believe that if passed, this measure will force local law enforcement agencies, including TCSO, to reduce services and change the types of calls that we are able to respond to, simply because we do not have staffing levels to support the additional workload that will be required. As proposed, the permit cost would not even fully fund the process, meaning taxpayers will have to make up the difference.
I also believe that if passed, Measure 114 will immediately be challenged in court. A nearly identical ban on magazine capacities was recently struck down by the United States 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, and this 2020 panel of the U.S. 9th Circuit Court’s decision is currently the law. The ruling clearly states that a high-capacity magazine ban violates the U.S. Constitution’s 2nd Amendment.
I believe that the proposed permit process as described in Measure 114 is also constitutionally questionable. The process will include a competency portion forcing potential permit holders to attend and pass a firearms course before being allowed to receive the permit. This will certainly bring litigation to our courts over serious questions of constitutionality. In the meantime, your law enforcement agencies will still be required to perform this service at great cost to the safety of our communities.
Currently in Oregon, background checks are required on all gun purchases. Additionally, all CHL permit holders are required to complete a firearm safety course and undergo an additional background check. I believe that Measure 114 adds additional levels of bureaucracy and significant cost at a time when law enforcement agencies are struggling to fill its ranks and retain funding.
The Oregon State Sheriff’s Association has issued an opposition statement that appears in the Voters’ pamphlet. I encourage you all to read the full text, and statements of each measure before making your decision on the ballot.
