OFF PAGE ONE
Thursday, May 6, 2021
East Oregonian
A7
Oregon Senate vote sends gun legislation to Gov. Brown
By PETER WONG
Oregon Capital Bureau
SALEM — Gov. Kate
Brown is the final stop for the
Oregon Legislature’s major
gun legislation of 2021.
The Senate voted on
Wednesday, May 5, to accept
the House version of a bill
that combines requirements
for locks and safe storage of
firearms with a narrowed ban
on concealed-handgun license
holders bringing firearms into
some public places, notably
the Oregon Capitol and Port-
land International Airport.
The vote was 17-7. Sen.
Betsy Johnson of Scappoose
was the lone Democrat to join
six Republicans in opposi-
tion to the revised Senate Bill
554. Five Republicans and one
independent were recorded as
excused or absent.
Sen. Bill Hansell, R-Ath-
ena, did not speak during floor
debate, but said afterward he
agreed with the sentiments
expressed by the others who
voted against the bill.
Sen. Floyd Prozanski, a
Democrat from Eugene and
chairman of the Senate Judi-
ciary Committee, said the bill
follows the principles laid out
by a 2008 U.S. Supreme Court
decision. The court for the first
time concluded there was an
individual right to bear arms
under the Second Amend-
ment to the U.S. Constitution,
but that right can be regulated.
“What we do know is that
reasonable regulations can
Pamplin Media Group, File/Oregon Capital Insider
The Oregon Senate voted on Wednesday, May 5, 2021, to accept the House version of a bill
that combines requirements for locks and safe storage of firearms. The bill also includes a
narrowed ban on concealed-handgun license holders bringing firearms into some public
places, such as the Oregon Capitol and Portland International Airport.
be placed on these individual
rights we have,” Prozanski
said. “The bottom line is that
we have a bill that does in fact
address certain areas that we
feel as a state need to be regu-
lated.”
Oregon would join 11
other states with some form
of requirements for locks
and safe storage of firearms,
according to the Kaiser
Family Foundation.
As for the narrower scope
of the ban on guns in some
public places, Prozanski
said it was a compromise.
The original Senate version
would have left it to all local
governments to decide restric-
tions for themselves; the final
version limits the option to
school districts, community
colleges and state universities.
The option for cities, coun-
ties and special districts was
removed.
The ban still applies to
the Capitol in Salem and the
passenger terminal at Port-
land International Airport.
As a state representative
in 1995, Prozanski voted for
a law that preempts local
governments from regulating
firearms, other than discharg-
ing them in public.
“But I will tell you that
even though I thought it was
the best decision I could make
at that time, today is a differ-
ent day,” he said.
State of Safety Action,
a nonprofit that advocates
prevention of gun violence,
issued a statement of support
after the vote.
“Safe storage saves lives,
helping prevent uninten-
tional shootings and firearm
suicides,” Henry Wessinger,
the group’s president, said. “It
will make it harder for poten-
tial school shooters to obtain
a gun, and it will support
responsible gun ownership.”
Senate Republican Leader
Fred Girod of Lyons took
issue not only with the restric-
tions, but also the process that
allowed the House to merge
its safe-storage bill with the
original Senate version, which
dealt with firearms in public
places.
“This is an example of how
bad this building can get,” he
said. “We were locked out of
the process in this bill.”
But like his counterpart
in the House, Republican
Leader Christine Drazan
of Canby, Girod also took
issue with the way some gun
rights advocates lobbied in
opposition to it. The Senate’s
March 25 vote on the origi-
nal version prompted threats
against some Republican
senators, and a recall effort
aimed at Girod, because they
did not walk out to call a halt
to Senate business.
“There is a fringe group
out there that is sure not
welcome in my office,” Girod
said. “It is not OK to threaten
people’s lives, their staff. It’s
not an appropriate way to
lobby.”
Key provisions of the
revised SB 554:
• Guns must have trigger
or cable locks, be stored in a
locked container or in a gun
room. An offense is a Class
C violation, which carries a
maximum fine of $500, unless
someone under age 18 obtains
access, in which case it is a
Class A violation with a maxi-
mum fine of $2,000. No jail
time is imposed for violations.
• Stolen firearms must be
reported to police, generally
within 72 hours.
• Initial filing fees for
concealed-handgun licenses
are increased from $50 to
$100, and for renewals, from
$50 to $75.
• The Capitol and the
Portland airport passen-
ger terminal are off-lim-
its to all firearms, including
those borne by holders of
concealed-handgun licenses,
except for law enforcement.
(The bill specifies airport
terminals with annual passen-
ger counts of 1 million;
Eugene and Medford were at
those thresholds in 2019 prior
to the coronavirus pandemic.
Sponsors say that the ban
applies only to Portland.)
Violations are considered
Class A misdemeanors with
maximum punishments of
one year in jail and a fine of
$6,250.
• Firearms bans for license
holders are optional at the
discretion of the governing
boards of Oregon’s 197 school
districts, 17 community
colleges, seven state univer-
sities and Oregon Health &
Science University. Notices
must be posted online, and
at entrances to buildings and
grounds.
• The final version removes
optional bans by cities, coun-
ties and special districts. Fire-
arms bans already apply to
state courts, which often are
in buildings maintained by
counties.
Dream: Last game of the season is May 25
Continued from Page A1
right direction, while the next
hit a line drive past third base
and jogged quickly straight to
first. All players run one base
at a time, until the last batter
brings everyone home.
Outfielders send the ball
back to the pitcher instead
of to a base, and several
outfielders also toss a few
extra softballs back and forth
while they wait their turn to
bat.
No matter what happens,
players, coaches and parents
in the stand erupt into cheers.
Smalley, whose daughter
plays on the Dream Team,
said she appreciates the
opportunity to create some-
thing that works for a lot of
different age groups and abil-
ities to join.
“It’s nice to do something
that’s activity based, that
doesn’t rely on verbal skills,”
she said.
Smalley also said she
often hears from parents
of the “neurotypical” Little
League athletes that it was
their child’s favorite game of
the season.
Bleyenberg said Little
League has always been great
about getting them whatever
equipment they need. When
she first got involved in the
program, started about a
decade ago by John Guillen,
she assumed it was a standard
part of Little League. But she
has since learned that most
kids don’t get that opportu-
nity.
Lexi Sinor and Avery
Devin, both 11, were two of
the Marlins helping Dream
Team athletes field balls and
run bases on May 4. Avery
said she liked helping out
with the game and was glad
she did it, while Lexi said it
was her first time playing in
the game, but she had a lot of
fun helping other people get
to play softball like she does.
“I like helping kids that
don’t always have the same
advantages,” she said.
After the two-inning
game is over and each Dream
Team player has gotten to bat
twice, players do some cheers
before lining up for a squirt of
Pool:
Continued from Page A1
stay below the extreme level
this summer, operations at
the pool will look different
than they have in past years.
Hughes said the city
expects to hire slightly more
pool staff to cover new sani-
tation standards, and all pool
Ben Lonergan/East Oregonian, File
The Oregon East Symphony performs a virtual concert at
the Vert Auditorium in Pendleton on Oct. 24, 2020. The
Vert Auditorium is among city facilities slated for im-
provements.
Ben Lonergan/East Oregonian
The Dream Team’s Nathaniel Shasteen, accompanied by a pair of Cardinals players, runs to-
ward second base at Hermiston’s Field of Dreams on Tuesday, May 4, 2021.
Budget: ‘We’re going
to create a summer road
map to make Pendleton
a tourist destination’
Continued from Page A1
Ben Lonergan/East Oregonian
The Dream Team’s Rian Middleton hits the ball during a game at Hermiston’s Field of Dreams
on Tuesday, May 4, 2021.
hand sanitizer and a snack.
Rian Middleton grabbed a
treat bag and juice box before
giving other players his
signature high fives. He said
his favorite part is getting to
hit the ball. It’s also the hard-
est part, he said.
The final game of the
season is May 25, and
Smalley said it will end with
a pizza party.
staff must wear masks unless
in the water. The same rule
applies to guests, who will
also be required to socially
distance when waiting in line
for concessions or the water
slide.
A mong the aquatic
center’s other facilities, the
lockers in the locker rooms
have been removed and rent-
ing the shelters is prohibited
until the county falls below
the high risk level.
Hughes said the pool
should be a relatively safe
environment during the
pandemic because the risk of
spreading the virus is lower
outdoors and all of the chem-
ical treatments staff use to
clean the pool should keep
the area sanitary.
While the number of
people allowed will fall well
below the aquatic center’s
true 8,500-person capac-
ity, Hughes said parks and
recreation is hoping to offset
some of the potential losses
by offering a more expansive
array of swimming classes.
As with anything related
to COVID-19, Hughes
cautioned that the city’s
aquatic center plans were
subject to change based on
any revisions to the state’s
guidance.
ated with the city’s build-
ings, and as recently as
2014, facility maintenance
was a part of a city bond
proposal. With the federal
stimulus coming in over
the next two years, Corbett
is again trying to put some
dollars toward facilities.
I ncluded wit h t he
budget is a laundry list of
repairs and improvements
that could be made with
the extra $3.4 million: new
heating, ventilation and air
conditioning systems at
the Vert Auditorium and
the McCune Recreation
Center, paying off debt
the Pendleton Convention
Center accumulated to pay
for a new roof, and new
cameras and paving on the
Pendleton River Parkway
are just a few of the proj-
ects being proposed.
The Vert is receiv-
ing a significant amount
of attention from the
city, with the complex
slated to receive more
than $500,000 dollars in
repairs to cover painting,
sound system installation
and chair and carpet repair
costs.
Despite all the invest-
ment, Corbett noted at a
Tuesday, May 4, budget
meeting that the Vert
rented out its space spar-
ingly throughout the year.
“It’s a facility that’s near
and dear to the commu-
nity that doesn’t make any
money,” he said.
Corbet t said he
had assigned Pendle-
ton Convention Center
Manager Pat Beard to work
on increasing activity at
the venerable venue.
Beard, along with
Economic Development
Director Steve Chrisman,
is a part of a group of tour-
ism interests that is trying
to get startup funding from
the stimulus for a new
tourism initiative — Pend-
leton Comes Alive. Under
the proposal, the group
would spend the money
on creating new tours and
bars around town in addi-
tion to installing people
dressed in Western garb
in the downtown area to
interact with tourists.
“We’re going to create a
summer road map to make
Pendleton a tourist desti-
nation,” Corbett said at the
meeting.
Corbett clarified that the
group was initially asking
for $250,000 a year for two
years, but after identify-
ing some areas where they
could save money, they
agreed to a $400,000 offer.
While the American
Rescue Plan is providing
Pendleton’s facilities a shot
in the arm, it isn’t meant to
be a sustainable source
of revenue. Corbett said
he’s discussed the issue
with the city’s department
heads, including the idea
of using money that’s been
unused at the end of the
fiscal year and funneling it
to a building maintenance
fund.
The budget commit-
tee will hold several more
meetings to finish review-
ing the budget. The Pend-
leton City Council is
expected to adopt the 2021-
22 budget on June 1.