All Issues and News
Welcome to the OFIR Issues and News page. All issue and news articles are consolidated here for viewing.
Blue Oregon could become first to repeal state sanctuary law
The Washington Times
2018-07-18
An Oregon anti-sanctuary initiative has qualified for the November ballot, raising the real possibility that one of the nation’s bluest states could become the first to repeal sanctuary status for immigrants who crossed the border illegally.
The Oregon Secretary of State’s office announced Tuesday that Initiative Petition 22 had cleared the signature threshold, registering a 95.3 percent validity rate on the 111,000 signatures submitted less than two weeks ago.
Organizers with Stop Oregon Sanctuaries needed 88,184 valid signatures to earn a slot on the ballot....
The high-...
KATU
2018-07-18
Oregonians will have the chance to vote to repeal the state’s sanctuary laws in this fall’s election.
The Oregon Secretary of State’s elections division tweeted Tuesday afternoon that Initiative Petition 22, or IP 22, qualified to appear on the Nov. 6 ballot.
It was introduced by three Republican state lawmakers who want to repeal a 1987 law that essentially says state and local resources can’t be used to enforce federal immigration laws if the person’s only crime is being in the United States illegally. The anti-sanctuary group, Oregonians For Immigration Reform, gained enough...
Salem Statesman Journal
2018-07-18
Voters will decide the future of Oregon's long-standing sanctuary state status in November after an initiative challenging the law qualified for the ballot Tuesday, according to the Secretary of State's office.
The Secretary of State certified that Initiative Petition 22 had 97,762 valid signatures — 86 percent of the signatures submitted and more than the 88,184 required to qualify for the general election.
The initiative aims to remove a 31-year-old statute prohibiting Oregon law enforcement agencies from arresting individuals whose only crime is violating federal immigration...
Initiative Petition 22 will be on the November 2018 ballot
Oregonians for Immigration Reform - OFIR
2018-07-17
Today, after more than a week of required signature review by the Oregon Secretary of State's Elections officials, the committee learned that the initiative has earned a place on the Nov. 2018 Geneal Election ballot.
Over a week ago, the Repeal Oregon's Sanctuary Law Committee announced it had submitted to the Oregon Secretary of State enough signatures to potentially qualify Initiative Petition 22 as a measure on the November 2018 statewide ballot.
"Today was another hurdle to clear in the culmination of a year-long, volunteer effort. Across the state, hundreds of...
Illegal immigration foes move to bypass liberal legislatures, take anti-sanctuary measures to voters
The Washington Times
2018-07-12
There’s virtually no chance that the uber-progressive Oregon legislature would ever repeal the state’s oldest-in-the-nation sanctuary law, which is why locals worried about illegal immigration have turned to the voters.
The Stop Oregon Sanctuaries campaign submitted roughly 110,000 signatures last week to qualify an anti-sanctuary measure for the November ballot, more than the 88,000 required, stunning liberal activists and laying the groundwork for a landmark ballot battle.
“This has national ramifications and our opponents know that,” said Cynthia Kendoll, president of...
VDare
2018-07-09
Last Thursday and Friday, July 5th and 6th, the stalwarts of Oregonians for Immigration Reform [OFIR] submitted to their Secretary of State more than 110,000 signatures from registered voters. Their aim: Qualify for November's ballot an initiative IP 22 that would allow voters to repeal Oregon's statewide sanctuary policy that heavily restricts cooperation between Oregon law enforcement and the federal immigration agencies. (In late May, I reported on their efforts here.)
As the number of signatures required was 88,184, OFIR has likely succeeded in the...
PJ Media
2018-07-07
A group gathering signatures to repeal the Oregon law that makes the state a defacto sanctuary for illegal aliens has faced legal action, threats, and harassment of its signature gatherers. The group, Oregonians for Immigration Reform (OFIR), has also been labeled a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center.
One volunteer signature gatherer told PJ Media that she faced verbal harassment and physical intimidation while attempting to get folks to sign the petition:
She claimed that our petition was dividing America. Putting fear in Hispanics. She called me a racist, lectured...
The initiative aims to remove a law that bars Oregon law enforcement agencies from arresting individuals whose only crime is violating federal immigration law.
Salem Statesman Journal
2018-07-06
Petitioners for an initiative that would undo Oregon's sanctuary state status for undocumented immigrants submitted 105,000 signatures to the Secretary of State's office Thursday afternoon.
The Secretary of State must certify that 88,184 of those signatures are valid for Initiative Petition 22 to appear before voters in November. Signatures can be submitted until 5 p.m. Friday.
"This afternoon, our committee took a huge step toward repealing Oregon's sanctuary statute and thereby freeing our police and sheriffs to cooperate more easily with federal immigration authorities...
OPB
2018-07-06
... Supporters of a controversial initiative to repeal Oregon’s sanctuary law appeared closer to qualifying for the November ballot.
Oregonians For Immigration Reform turned in 105,000 signatures, according to the group’s president, Cynthia Kendoll. She said backers are also urging petitioners to bring additional signatures to the state Capitol on Friday morning to try to pad their margin. The group needs 88,184 valid signatures from registered voters to qualify for the ballot. That gives them a current margin of error of 19 percent, which might not be enough. “I will...Oregonians for Immigration Reform
2018-07-05
Today, the Repeal Oregon Sanctuary Law Committee announces that it has submitted to the Oregon Secretary of State the signatures needed to likely qualify Initiative Petition 22 as a measure on the November 2018 statewide ballot. The measure will give voters the opportunity to overturn Oregon Revised Statute 181A.820, the state's illegal-immigrant de facto sanctuary law.
Oregon State Representatives Esquivel, Barreto and Nearman are Chief Petitioners of the initiative and Cynthia Kendoll is authorized agent and President of Oregonians for Immigration Reform, which spearheaded the...
