HB 3149 : Firearm Dealers May Set Policy to Not Sell Firearms to People Under 21
Position: Support Status: July 1, 2019: End of session, bill was not passed
Gun dealers at gun shows or gun shows are permitted to establish a minimum age of at least 21 years of age for firearm sales or transfers.
Update
March 5, 2019: Referred to House Judiciary Committee February 27, 2019: Introduced by Jennifer Williamson
After the Marjory Stoneman Douglas mass shooting in Parkland, Florida on February 14, 2018 that left 17 dead, several firearm retailers no longer wish to sell or transfer guns to people under the age of 21. (The Parkland shooter was 19 years old.) Current Oregon law states that people must be at least 18 years old to purchase a long gun (rifle) and 21 years old to purchase a handgun.
Shortly thereafter, two people, Jackson Starrett who was 19 at the time of attempted purchase and Hayden Parsons who was 20, attempted by buy firearms in Canby and Bend, respectively. Both were denied purchase because the policy of the stores is to not sell firearms or ammunition to people under 21 years of age. Starrett and Parsons filed an age-discrimination lawsuit against the stores. (Bend Bulletin, March 23, 2018)
Since that time, Kroger announced it would not sell any weapons or ammunition and some retailers announced they would immediately stop selling assault weapons like AR-15s.
The Oregon Bureau of Labor Industries (BOLI) was approached by large retailers with a request that their stores not be required to sell firearms to people under 21. BOLI submitted SB 87 which would have required people to be at least 21 years of age to purchase any type of gun.
Several bills have been submitted in the 2019 legislative session to remove the requirement from stores that they sell guns to people who are too young to legally rent a car (25 years old).
Governor Brown’s Gun Violence Prevention Bill (HB 2251)
HB 3149 allows gun dealers or a person transferring a firearm at gun show to establish minimum age of at least 21 years of age for purchase of firearms but does not require all firearm purchasers to be 21 years of age.