With its initiative, OGO will be fighting not only gun-control advocates but also fellow Second Amendment protectors. The OGO measure, like Burdick's, would extend background checks to all handgun transfers by any dealer who handles more than 25 guns. This will close what's been called the gun-show loophole in the current law. The OGO figures that since voters seem intent on closing the loophole, government-wary gun owners should get something in return. So the OGO measure includes a provision to help them rest easier.
Current law requires the state to keep for five years the records of any instant-check gun purchase.
The records are held in Salem and accessible by any law-enforcement officer who is investigating a gun crime. The OGO's measure would eliminate all record-keeping. Kevin Starrett, executive director of the Oregon Firearms Federation, has been aggressively critical of OGO's initiative and has vowed to fight it. It isn't clear whether the big dog of the gun lobby, the National Rifle Association, plans to oppose the measure or stay neutral. John Hellen, lobbyist for OGO, says Rod Harder of the NRA had some issues with his measure.