On Monday, the House gave preliminary approval to a trio of gun control bills. This gun control package will be up for a final vote on Tuesday, September 30. Although five bills were originally included in the package, only three bills remain. HB 837 (one-gun-a-month) failed to advance in committee last week, and on Monday, HB 1866 (machine gun conversion devices) did not make the cut. Sustained gun owner pressure is making a difference. Please continue to contact your House member!
Bills up for a final vote Tuesday include:
HB 1099 is labeled as “ghost gun” legislation, however, this bill is not that. Rather, it attempts to create state law mirroring federal “undetectable” firearms law, but it fails and creates additional issues. This bill is problematic because it would adopt a state statute with language differing from federal law potentially creating problems with interpretation and misapplied enforcement. HB 1099 also lacks the exceptions present in federal law leaving law-abiding citizens vulnerable to prosecution.
HB 1593 would mandate universal background checks. Every dealer transaction in the country already must pass a background check. This bill does not keep guns out of the hands of criminals. This type of legislation results in more costly, bureaucratic red tape. The Commonwealth’s PICS check is also notorious for lengthy delays, denying purchasers with an urgent self-defense need.
HB 1859 creates emergency protection orders. These so-called “red flag” laws are susceptible to abuse and have no repercussions for making false accusations. The orders are granted ex parte with little to no due process.
The full House is expected to take a final vote on these bills Tuesday, September 30. Your help is urgently needed! Please contact your Representative today and respectfully ask them to reject all of these bills and any new gun control.
Please stay tuned to the NRA-ILA website and your inbox for updates as this legislative session progresses.