Suns Out, Guns Out In Florida
Why not start this off with some good news — as it might soften the blow for all of the new gun-control initiatives lawmakers have introduced for 2023’s legislative sessions. In the hopes of making the United States a majority pro-Second Amendment country, Florida lawmakers have introduced legislation that would make Florida the 26th state with constitutional carry laws on the books.
On Jan. 30, 2023, House Speaker Paul Renner (R-Palm Coast) spoke at a press briefing, where he announced HB 543, which “would allow weapons and firearms without a license for concealment.” Backed by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, the bill was written and proposed by Rep. Chuck Brannan (R-Lake City) and Sen. Jay Collins (R-Tampa). The bill’s text states that a “concealed weapon means any dirk, metallic knuckles, billie, tear gas gun, chemical weapon or device, or other deadly weapon carried on or about a person in such a manner as to conceal the weapon from the ordinary sight of another person.”
Wayward Ways in Washington
As half of the states loosen restrictions on firearms by enacting constitutional carry, the other half are tightening their grip on gun rights. Just as Illinois steps into a steaming pile of lawsuits related to its new “assault weapons” ban, Washington state legislators are looking to join in on the legal festivities by passing a similar ban. Gov. Jay Inslee announced plans for this legislative session by stating, “Now, other nations have difficulties in mental health. Other nations have people who get into arguments. But we have this scourge of gun violence because of the wrong kinds of guns in the wrong hands.”
The following bills were also introduced at the beginning of the legislative session in January:
- HB 1178: This bill would repeal the firearms preemption in Washington, which would allow cities to create their own gun-control ordinances, making Washington a cesspool of differing gun laws by county.
- HB 1143: This bill creates a “permit to purchase” requirement (similar to Illinois’ FOID card) and would require mandatory training.
- HB 1144: This bill creates a mandatory training requirement to purchase firearms that would need to be renewed every five years.
- HB 1240: This is an “assault weapons” ban that would prohibit possession of some 65 models of semi-automatic rifles.
- SB 5078: This bill would eliminate immunity for firearms manufacturers, giving individuals the right to sue them out of existence.
GunOwners.org, SeattleTimes.com
Not So Merry in Maryland
If you like carrying your firearm for self-defense in public, where criminals tend to prey on vulnerable individuals, Maryland legislators are here to stop you. That is not even remotely close to a satirical statement. Sen. Jeff Waldstreicher, vice chair of the Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee, introduced a bevy of new gun-control bills that would render you defenseless — including one that prohibits carrying a firearm, even by an individual with a concealed carry permit, within 100 feet of a public place. Waldstreicher (D-18) said that prohibited places would include “schools, hospitals, libraries, synagogues, churches [and] mosques [and] also parks, restaurants [and] anywhere the public is gathering.” So basically, you can carry your firearm around your house and maybe around someone else’s if he or she allows it.
Also, if you are under the age of 21 and like to hunt, Maryland is, once again, here to stop you. A second bill — Raise the Age Act of 2023 — would legally raise the age to purchase a rifle or shotgun to 21. Waldstreicher demonstrated his lack of knowledge by stating, “I want to make sure these mass shootings don’t happen in Maryland, and that means restricting long guns for people aged 18 to 21.” Just a little bit of research would have revealed that handguns are the most common weapon type used in mass shootings in the United States. In fact, between 1982 and 2023, 78 percent of mass shootings involved the use of handguns, not rifles or shotguns.
These bills are currently under consideration by the Maryland Legislature. If you would like to oppose these bills, please reach out to your state rep.
Virginia by the Dozen
Virginia lawmakers apparently had a competition on how many gun-control bills could be introduced in a single legislative session (17, to be exact). Some of the bills even seem to contradict each other, which is becoming more commonplace these days. For example, Delegate Mark Sickles (D) introduced HB 2288, which would raise the age to buy “assault weapons” to 21. However, Delegate Dan Helmer (D) introduced HB 2240 in hopes of prohibiting the sale, manufacture, purchase and transport of “assault weapons” and “high-capacity” magazines altogether. Some of the other more pertinent bills under consideration are:
- HB 1579: Introduced by Delegate Rip Sullivan (D), this bill would prohibit any person convicted of a DUI within a five-year period from purchasing or transporting firearms.
- HB 1729: Introduced by Delegate Elizabeth Bennett-Parker (D), this bill would require any individual under protective orders or convicted of assault and battery to appear before a judge and provide the name and address of the individual to whom he or she surrendered his or her firearms.
- HB 1936: Introduced by Delegate Kenneth Plum (D), this bill would create a Virginia “buy back” program and fund.
- HB 2070: Introduced by Delegate Kathleen Murphy (D), this bill would prohibit anyone convicted of assault and battery on a family member from purchasing, possessing or transporting a firearm.
- HB 2227, HB 2350 and HB 2141: Introduced by Delegates Kathleen Murphy (D), Marcus Simon (D) and Schuyler Van Valkenburg (D), these bills are aimed at securing firearms from minors. HB 2227 says an individual is liable if he or she leaves a firearm unsecured and injury or death occurs as a result of a minor possessing it.
- HB 2273: Introduced by Delegate Chris Hayes (D), this bill would create a three-day waiting period between a background check and the actual purchase of a firearm.
Federal Firearms Foes
If you jump into the way-back machine to 2022, you might remember a bill passing the House of Representatives that would effectively ban most semi-automatic rifles, much like the 1994 Crime Bill did for the better part of a decade. However, the bill was not expected to pass the 60-vote threshold in the Senate. As a new Congress begins the 2023 legislative session, three lawmakers in the Senate have introduced new bills to reinvigorate this ban. Sens. Dianne Feinstein (D-California), Richard Blumenthal (D-Connecticut) and Chris Murphy (D-Connecticut) have introduced the Assault Weapons Ban and the Age 21 Act bills.
The Assault Weapons Ban is much like other bills that have been introduced in the United States Congress. It would effectively:
- Ban the sale, manufacture, transfer and importation of 205 semi-automatic rifles (owners may keep existing units)
- Ban any firearm that has the capacity to utilize a magazine that is not a fixed-ammunition magazine and that has one or more of the following: a pistol grip, a forward grip, a barrel shroud, a threaded barrel, or a folding or telescoping stock (owners may keep existing units)
- Ban magazines and other ammunition- feeding devices that hold more than 10 rounds of ammunition (owners may keep existing magazines)
- Require a background check on any future sale, trade or gifting of firearms listed in the bill
- Require that any grandfathered firearm be stored using a secure storage or safety device, such as a trigger lock
- Prohibit the transfer of so-called “high-capacity” ammunition magazines
- Ban bump-fire stocks and other devices that allow semi-automatic firearms to fire at higher rates
The Age 21 Act would raise the federal age to purchase a rifle from 18 to 21. Furthermore, there is a third bill being introduced in the House of Representatives by Rep. David Cicilline (D-Rhode Island) that is very similar to the Assault Weapons Ban bill.
Take Me Home, Country Roads: West Virginia
West Virginia is here to offer a glimmer of hope for Second Amendment advocates among the bevy of legislation that seeks to strip your rights away. If you or your child decides to attend college in West Virginia, you will be allowed to carry your firearm on campus for self-defense. Senate Bill 10, or the Campus Self-Defense Act, sponsored by 17 Republican state senators, passed the Senate and the House of Representatives. It was signed by Gov. Jim Justice on March 1. The law will go into effect in July 2024.
This bill will allow individuals holding concealed carry permits to carry on campus (but strictly prohibits open carry). West Virginia law currently allows the higher-education institutions to implement their own rules on firearms; however, this law would supersede their policies for permit holders. The bill’s lead sponsor, Sen. Rupie Phillips, referenced the need for women to have a means of self-defense against sexual assault on college campuses. Phillips said, “I don’t want my daughter to have to face this — I don’t want your daughter, your granddaughters to ever have to face that … that’s another reason that we need to get this through.”
The Land of Infringement: New Mexico
New Mexico has decided to jump on the age-restriction bandwagon as two state senators have introduced new legislation to restrict New Mexican citizens’ Second Amendment rights. Sens. Carrie Hamblen (D-Las Cruces) and Bill Soules (D-Las Cruces) have introduced Senate Bill 116 and Senate Bill 171, banning anyone under the age of 21 from possessing or purchasing any semi-automatic firearm. Fortunately for those who like to hunt in New Mexico, the bill does offer some exclusions, such as:
- Someone who attends a hunter’s safety course or other firearms safety course
- Someone who engages in the use of an automatic or semi-automatic firearm for target shooting at an established range authorized by the governing body of the jurisdiction in which the range is located or in an area where the discharge of an automatic or semi-automatic firearm without legal justification is not prohibited by law
- Someone who engages in an organized competition involving the use of an automatic or semi-automatic firearm
- Someone who participates in or practices for a performance by an organization that has been granted exemption from federal income tax by the United States commissioner of internal revenue as an organization described in Section 501(c)(3) of the United States Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended or renumbered
- Someone who engages in legal hunting or trapping activities
