Oregon gun initiative backers concede, plan 2020 effort

(Update: Backers of IP 43 will try again in 2020)

SALEM, Ore. (AP) – Supporters of an initiative to ban some semi-automatic rifles and pistols, along with high capacity magazines, are stopping efforts to pass the measure this year but plan an effort to get it onto the ballot in 2020.

At a press conference Thursday, backers of the initiative conceded that a Supreme Court ruling the day before had introduced a delay that would push Initiative Petition 43 past a key deadline, stopping it from qualifying for the 2018 ballot, and said they were planning an effort to place a proposal on the 2020 ballot.

The court found problems with the official description of the initiative drafted by its supporters, and said it had to be revised before supporters could begin gathering the signatures, triggering a legally required delay.

Secretary of State Dennis Richardson noted the move by petitioners for Initiative Petition 43 (IP 43) follows the similar decisions of petitioners for Initiative Petition 44 (IP 44) last week and Initiative Petition 28 (IP 28) several months ago.

“Whether I agree or not with a particular cause, I strongly believe Oregonians should have the right to petition their government without the deck stacked against them,” Richardson said. “I urge the Legislature to adopt the grassroots petition protections that I have consistently advocated.”

Earlier this year, the Legislature rejected Secretary Richardson’s recommendation to empower grassroots petitioners. He said his solution would have allowed petitioners to circulate their petitions that had already received a certified ballot title from the Attorney General while any legal challenges are pending with the Supreme Court.