NEWS
MyEagleNews.com
Wednesday, April 7, 2021
A7
Gun storage requirement heads for vote
Trigger or cable
locks, containers or
gun rooms would be
required
By Peter Wong
Oregon Capital Bureau
Another gun regulation
bill is headed for a legislative
debate and vote, this time in
the Oregon House.
House Bill 2510, approved
March 30 by the House Health
Care Committee, would
require the storage of fi rearms
with trigger or cable locks, in
a locked container or in a gun
room. An off ense is a Class
C violation, which carries a
maximum fi ne of $500, unless
someone under age 18 obtains
access, in which case it is a
Class A violation with a max-
imum fi ne of $2,000. No jail
time is imposed for violations.
The committee vote was
EOMG fi le photo
A cable gun lock. A bill being considered would mandate gun
storage requirements.
6-4. All Democrats voted for
it, and all Republicans against
it.
On March 25, the Oregon
Senate voted 16-7 to approve
a bill making state buildings
— including the Capitol —
off -limits to fi rearms carried
by concealed-handgun licens-
ees. Senate Bill 554, which
went to the House, leaves it
up to local governments to
decide that question for their
own buildings.
Oregon is among the
states with no laws regulat-
ing gun storage, according to
the pro-regulation Giff ords
Law Center. Laws in Califor-
nia and Washington apply to
some aspects of storage.
When the House Health
Care Committee heard the gun
storage bill March 11, almost
400 pieces of testimony were
submitted for and against
House Bill 2510. Some people
submitted more than one.
“We cannot gun-proof chil-
dren,” Dr. Benjamin Hoff man,
pediatrician at Doernbecher
Children’s Hospital at Ore-
gon Health & Science Univer-
sity, testifi ed. “We must child-
proof guns.”
Between 1999 and 2019,
he said, Oregon averaged
3.5 deaths by fi rearms per
100,000 people, compared
with the national average of
2.3 per 100,000. For youths
under 19 during the period,
he said Oregon averaged 6.3
deaths per 100,000, compared
with the national average of 5
per 100,000.
“Gun violence is one of
the leading causes of death
for people my age,” Hope
Williams, a volunteer with
Students Demand Action
in Oregon, said in a state-
ment after the vote. “We
want to feel safe at home
and in our communities and
that starts with securely stor-
ing fi rearms to prevent gun
violence.”
Students Demand Action,
together with Moms Demand
Action, constitute Every-
town for Gun Safety.
“Even in a pandemic, our
communities are continu-
ing to endure gun violence
everyday,” Elizabeth Klein,
a gun violence survivor and
volunteer for the Oregon
chapter of Moms Demand
Action, said. “And, uninten-
tional shootings and gun sui-
cides have continued to rise
over the past year. Secure
storage is an eff ective and
easy way to help prevent
these tragedies.”
But Oregon’s gun-rights
advocates staunchly opposed
the bill.
“This bill will sub-
ject hundreds of thou-
sands of law-abiding citi-
zens with potential criminal
and civil liability overnight
for actions that are perfectly
legal today,” Paul Donhef-
fner, legislative commit-
tee chairman for the Oregon
Hunters Association, said in
testimony to the committee.
Kevin Starrett is direc-
tor of the Oregon Firearms
Federation, which bills itself
as a no-compromise group
on gun rights. It even dis-
paraged Republican law-
makers working on regula-
tion of fi rearms sales at gun
shows in 1999, a year after
the group’s founding. The
bill did not pass, but voters
approved a related initiative
measure in 2000 by a 62%
majority.
Starrett had harsher words
for lawmakers during his
committee testimony.
“Gun owners in Ore-
gon have been remarkably
well-behaved,” he said.
“But if you keep rewarding
criminals and punishing the
law-abiding, don’t expect
them to stay that way.”
Governor: Fourth wave of COVID-19 hits Oregon
Most pessimistic
forecasts from last
month coming true
By Gary A. Warner
Oregon Capital Bureau
COVID-19
infections
are on the rise again in Ore-
gon, a fourth wave of increas-
ing cases since the pandemic
began.
“This virus is at our door-
step — our numbers are ris-
ing and we are back on alert,”
said Gov. Kate Brown at a
Friday press conference.
A steep drop in infections
since Jan. 1 had shown signs
of bottoming out in recent
weeks, but the most current
data shows COVID-19 is
again on the rise.
The April numbers are
showing that the most pessi-
mistic forecasts last month are
coming true.
“The virus appears to be
rebounding,” said Dr. Dean
Sidelinger, OHA’s top infec-
tious disease expert. “COVID-
19 is a resilient enemy.”
OHA reports cases are
averaging 392 per day, while
hospitalizations are up and the
percentage of tests that come
back positive is 3.7%. That
is still below the 5% level
above which OHA has said
growth of the virus becomes
exponential.
The rise comes despite the
arrival of three vaccines that
can inoculate people from the
virus. But only 18% of Orego-
nians are currently completely
vaccinated, slightly higher
than the national average.
OHA had hoped to have
at least one shot of vaccine
PMG fi le photo
Gov. Kate Brown, at a May press event, wearing her social dis-
tancing mask in public.
given to every Oregonian
over age 16 who wanted one
by late May. Due to vaccine
delivery issues, OHA is now
looking at early June to reach
the goal.
The state is getting an aver-
age of about 30,000 new shots
of vaccine into people’s arms
per day, though mostly the
Moderna and Pfi zer vaccines
that require two shots spaced
out over about a month.
OHA had been hoping for
a surge of new one-shot John-
son & Johnson vaccines. But
the company announced this
week that a subcontractor in
Baltimore had improperly
mixed ingredients, ruining as
many as 15 million doses set
to go out to states over the
next few weeks.
Johnson & Johnson vac-
cines that are currently being
given are not from this batch
and are safe and eff ective, the
Centers for Disease Control
reported earlier this week.
Oregon has over 35,000
doses of Johnson & Johnson
vaccine available now, but it
will receive between 200,000
and 300,000 fewer doses than
expected in coming weeks.
The inoculation campaign
comes amid concern of the
growth of new, more conta-
gious and likely more lethal
versions of COVID-19.
Researchers have found
that those who are inoculated
will most likely be spared
severe illness or death com-
pared to the unvaccinated.
“This is a race between the
vaccines and the variants,”
Brown said.
Washington will become
the latest state to off er vac-
cines to everyone age 16 and
above earlier than the federal
May 1 deadline. Gov. Jay Ins-
lee has announced all eligibil-
ity restrictions will be lifted
April 15.
Brown said Oregon would
stay with its current plans that
would not lift restrictions until
May 1, though some counties
could petition to open vacci-
nation to more people in the
last week of April.
Oregon was fi ghting to
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make vaccination equitable
across economic and ethnic
groups, Brown said.
“The goal of Oregon’s vac-
cination strategy is to make
sure we are doing this fast and
doing this fairly,” she said.
Brown announced that,
eff ective immediately, peo-
ple with several additional
underlying medical con-
ditions would be added to
the advanced eligibility list,
including smokers. A full list
will be released by OHA.
The state will also allow
workers who are currently eli-
gible for the vaccine — such
as farmworkers — to bring all
adults in their household to be
vaccinated at the same time.
OHA is also working with
the Federal Emergency Man-
agement Agency to create
pop-up and mobile vaccina-
tion centers in rural parts of
the state, including Morrow
County.
Not on OHA’s agenda is
any loosening of business
restrictions.
OHA offi cials said they
would be sticking with the
four-tiered county risk level
system, with the next changes
announced April 6 to go into
eff ect April 9.
The state has allowed
counties that recently dropped
down a level but rebounded
higher in the next period to
hold off on reinstating restric-
tions during a two-week grace
period.
Sidelinger said the same
system did not apply to coun-
ties that had sustained lower
infection rates for multiple
weeks and are now rising
again.
Deschutes County has
been in the moderate risk
range. But its rate of infec-
tions per 100,000 people was
reported Monday at 99.5.
If a county goes over 100,
it is considered in the high
risk category, and additional
restrictions on gatherings,
dining and other activities
could be reinstated.
Among the issues that
OHA is facing in its goal
to maximize inoculations
is what OHA Director Pat
Allen called “a softening of
demand” for vaccine among
targeted senior groups, par-
ticularly in southwestern Ore-
gon and portions of rural East-
ern Oregon.
Sidelinger said evidence is
beginning to show an unfor-
tunate relaxed attitude toward
mask wearing and social
distancing as the warmer
spring weather brings people
together.
“Mask use is going down,
while travel is going up,”
Sidelinger said.
A report on Friday by the
New York Times of travel vol-
ume at airports included sta-
tistics showing Portland Inter-
national Airport passenger
traffi c is up 43% compared to
February 2020. Air traffi c in
Eugene is up 60%, while Red-
mond is up 62% and Medford
is up 63%.
A CDC report this week
said air travelers who wear
their masks throughout a fl ight
do not have an increased level
of exposure to the virus.
Nationwide, just under 3
million doses of COVID-19
vaccine are being adminis-
tered daily.
The pandemic has caused
129.97 million cases and
over 2.83 million deaths
worldwide, according to the
Johns Hopkins Coronavirus
Resource Center. The United
States has had over 30.57 mil-
lion cases and 553,691 deaths,
the center says.
More information on the
COVID-19 situation in Ore-
gon and how to fi nd vaccina-
tions can be found at getvac-
cinated.oregon.gov.
Grant SWCD Weed Control Dept.
Working for You in 2021
Thanks to the Grant County Court and Northeast Oregon Forests Resource
Advisory Committee, Grant Weed Control is able to offer a 50% Cost
Share Program for Noxious Weed Control on Private Grazing Lands,
through a Title II funded Grant Project. This program will provide a
maximum $5,000 of noxious weed control services with a $2,500 maximum
landowner contribution to qualifying participants. To be eligible for
participation, the treatment property must not be actively irrigated and
must be primarily managed for livestock grazing, minimum of 20 acres in
size, located within Grant County, and must contain weed species listed on
the Grant County Noxious Weed List. Applications for this limited weed
control assistance opportunity will be funded on a first come first serve
basis.
Applications due by April 16th.
Contact the Grant Soil and Water Conservation District Office at
(541) 575-1554 or visit 721 S. Canyon Blvd., John Day, OR 97845 for
applications and additional information.
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BUSINESS ADVISER RESPONSIBLE FOR COVERING ALL
OF GRANT AND WHEELER COUNTY.
The successful applicant must have a strong business
background with a minimum of four years experience to assist
entrepreneurs and existing business owners. A business related
degree is preferred. There are reporting requirements to be
completed in a timely manner and utmost confidentiality is a must.
Hourly rate DOE.
If you are interested in applying, email a cover
letter, resume and three professional references
to eousbdc@gmail.com.
Applicants must have reliable transportation and a valid driver’s
license as travel within the counties is required. If you would like
further information or have questions, please call 541-962-1532.
Oregon Small Business Development Centers are funded in part through a cooperative agreement with the
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