Witnesses say Oregon should ban conversion devices that make semi-automatics fire like machine guns

A Giffords policy attorney told the joint Judiciary committees that several devices that convert semi-automatic firearms into near-automatic fire — bump stocks, auto sears ("switches") and forced-reset triggers (FRTs) — present heightened public-safety risks and that states can act to ban them.

Ethan Murray described bump stocks and auto sears, including a demonstration video shown to the committees comparing a standard pistol with one equipped with an auto sear. Murray said bump stocks became widely known after the 2017 Las Vegas mass shooting and that federal ATF regulations later treated bump stocks as machine guns — a regulatory classification the Supreme Court recently rejected in Garland v. Cargill, leaving the devices lawful at the federal administrative level while preserving state authority to regulate them.

Murray said ATF data show a large increase in recovered conversion devices and that auto sears and FRTs have proliferated through online marketplaces and 3D printing. He urged Oregon lawmakers to join the 23 states that have banned such conversion devices, citing their association with higher rates of bystander injuries and reduced ability to control fire. "States like Washington and California have banned these devices," Murray said, noting the Supreme Court rulings cited administrative limits rather than constitutional prohibitions.

Witnesses emphasized that state action could close the gap left by changing federal administrative guidance. The hearing did not include floor debate or votes; subject-matter witnesses offered to provide additional technical materials and references in follow-up written submissions to the committees.