Anti-gun lawmakers in the Empire State are running out of things to ban.
New York already prohibits a broad category of so-called “assault weapons,” almost all magazines capable of holding more than ten rounds, suppressors, machine guns, “rapid fire modification devices” (bump stocks, trigger cranks, binary trigger systems, burst trigger systems, pistol converters, and similar devices), unserialized firearms, unserialized or unfinished frames/receivers, metal knuckles, chuka sticks, wrist-brace type slingshots or slungshots, shurikens, throwing stars, many kinds of toy guns, and much more.
Illustrating the endless aims of gun control advocates, two pending bills in the New York State legislature now propose restrictions on air rifles, pellet guns, and BB guns. Senate bill S9215 and the identical Assembly bill, A10701, would change the definition of an “imitation weapon” under NY Gen. Bus. Law §§ 870 to 873 to include “an air rifle, pellet gun, or ‘B-B’ gun;” amend NY Gen. Bus. Law § 399-r, on the sale of paint pellet guns, to include other types of air guns, and redefine “gun industry member” to include makers of “imitation weapons.”
Currently, “imitation weapons” (any device or object made of plastic, wood, metal or any other material which substantially duplicates or can reasonably be perceived to be an actual firearm, air rifle, pellet gun, or BB gun) must meet five requirements in order to be lawfully imported, offered for sale, sold, or distributed within the state. The “imitation weapon” must be “constructed entirely of transparent or translucent materials;” be colored white, bright red, bright orange, bright yellow, bright green, bright blue, bright pink or bright purple on the entire exterior or as the primary color; except for water guns, have a barrel that is closed for a distance of not less than a half-inch from the front end of its barrel with the same material of which item is made; be legibly stamped with the manufacturer’s name or identifiable mark by which the manufacturer can be readily identified; and not have an attached laser pointer.
Although the bills don’t address possession, the effect of the amendment to the “imitation weapon” definition is that in order to be lawfully imported, marketed, sold, or distributed in New York State, air rifles, pellet guns, and BB guns would be required to comply with all five requirements. The closed/plugged barrel requirement means that should the amendment pass in its current wording, the only models available for import and sale would no longer be functional (able to fire a projectile).
The second amendment – which seemingly contradicts the first – would revise the existing law on the sale of paint pellet guns to roll in other types of air guns (“any implement that expels a missile or projectile by the force of a spring, air, or other non-ignited compressed gas”). If passed, these changes would raise the minimum age to purchase such items from 16 to 18 years old and double the current penalty for a violation.
The proposed changes on the sale, manufacturing, importing and marketing of firearms to add makers of “imitation weapons” as “gun industry members” would imposes the liabilities and responsibilities applicable to gun industry members on “imitation weapon” makers. Among other things, such makers would have to “establish and utilize reasonable controls and procedures to prevent… imitation weapons from being possessed, used, marketed or sold unlawfully in New York state.”
NRA has recently filed an amicus brief in a lawsuit challenging the existing version of this statute, which creates a public-nuisance-based cause of action against firearms manufacturers and sellers for the criminal misuse of their products by third parties. The existing statute operates contrary to the traditional principles of tort law and the federal Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act.
The supposed purpose of these bills is “to reduce confusion between imitation weapons and real firearms, strengthen age restrictions on air guns, and ensure that businesses involved in making and selling imitation weapons follow the same basic safety standards that apply to the firearm industry.” What this doesn’t mention is that state law already prohibits (with some exceptions) anyone under the age of 16 from possessing “any air-gun, spring-gun or other instrument or weapon in which the propelling force is a spring or air,” already prohibits the sale and distribution of toys/imitation guns that “substantially duplicate or can reasonably be perceived to be an actual firearm, air rifle, pellet gun, or BB gun,” and criminalizes “disguised guns” (weapons or devices using the energy of an explosive and intended to appear to be a toy gun or something other than a gun). Manufacturers of actual firearms are, in fact, heavily regulated at the federal and state level, and these regulations don’t logically carry over to makers of toys and other “imitation weapons.”
The fact is that air guns are often the choice for beginner shooters, and also used for hunting, pest control, as an inexpensive training tool, and in national and international competitions. Air guns “can be found in nearly every shooting program, and air gun programs have been adopted by many national organizations, including the National Wheelchair Athletic Association, National Association of Sports for Cerebral Palsy, U.S. Jaycees, Boy Scouts of America, Explorer Scouts, 4-H, and Police Athletic League.”
New York’s legislators, though, apparently see villainy in every gun. Not only are responsible firearm owners and the firearms industry under constant political attack, but the same anti-gun hostility and extreme “gun safety” policies invariably reach further, to popular air rifles, BB guns and even harmless imitation firearms.
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