proposed laws

PA Bill Number: HB777

Title: In firearms and other dangerous articles, further providing for definitions and providing for the offense of sale of firearm or firearm parts without ...

Description: In firearms and other dangerous articles, further providing for definitions and providing for the offense of sale of firearm or firearm parts without ...

Last Action: Third consideration and final passage (104-97)

Last Action Date: Mar 27, 2024

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FOAC's Weekly Message For Sunday January 19th 2020 :: 01/19/2020

The controversy in Virginia over the Democrat takeover of statewide politicas and their fixation on draconian gun control has completely overshadowed the 2A/gun control debate. The nearly continuous spewing of lies from gun control groups on the 2nd Amendment and how they ONLY want reasonable gun laws has been exposed once and for all. Not ONE single gun control group has objected in any way to what is occurring in Virginia. NEVER FORGET THIS!

On top of that, I believe it is important to remember just ‘how’ Virginia got in the mess!

The election last year exposed the failure of the Republican Party to even field candidates in roughly 25 percent of the House and Senate races. The GOP played to not lose rather than to win.  Defense NEVER wins elections. Pennsylvania is just ‘ONE’ election away from this happening here.

Pennsylvania's legislature has been controlled by Republicans for nearly a decade, but progressive organizers hope to shift the balance of power in this year’s election. Democrats need to pick up four seats in the Senate and nine in the House to break Republican control. On Thursday, the national billionaire funded progressive grassroots organization Swing Left said it will help with volunteer and fundraising efforts in more than 20 districts statewide, WESA reports.

Pennsylvania has 3 special elections coming up on March 17th in the 8th, 18th and 58th PA House Districts. Please stay tuned as we focus in on the candidates and their views!

Back to Virginia, I don’t believe that Northam has the authority to institute his gun ban in Capitol Square, but unfortunately the Virginia State Supreme Court didn’t reach the merits of the case brought by VCDL and GOA. Instead, the court ruled that the groups didn’t file the necessary paperwork with the Court, and refused the petition, leaving open the question of whether or not the governor has overstepped his constitutional authority.

This video on Dillons Rule is important for ‘all’ of us to understand in regard to Freedom issues and the ‘limitations’ of power of elected officials: https://foac-pac.org/Videos/39

As for Northam’s gun control legislation, here’s where things actually stand right now.

Ban on so-called “assault firearms,” magazines over ten rounds, suppressors, and trigger activators

There’s actually good news to report here. Sen. Dick Saslaw’s orginal ban on so-called “assault firearms” and hardware was killed in a Senate committee last week. Friday was the filing deadline for new legislation, and no new bill was introduced in the state Senate. That leaves HB 961 as the sole vehicle for a ban on the most commonly sold rifle in the country today, along with bans on commonly owned magazines and suppressors.

HB 961 contains a “grandfather clause” permitting current gun owners to maintain possession of their firearms, but only if they register themselves and their guns with the state. It’s an awful bill, and it would be an absolute infringement on the right to keep and bear arms, but it hasn’t even had a hearing yet. What’s more, at least four Virginia senate Democrats say they’re not on board with the language they’ve seen so far. Simply put, right now there aren’t enough votes to pass this bill in the Senate, even if it were to pass the House.

Obviously that can change, and we need to continue to lobby our lawmakers, particularly those four Democrat senators opposed to the current language, to encourage them to reject this bill that would turn the vast majority of the state’s legal gun owners into felons for simply maintaining possession of their legally owned firearms, magazines, and suppressors.

Red Flag Law

Democrats passed SB 240 out of committee, but only after completely gutting the original language. The state Senate was scheduled to vote on SB 240 this week, but pulled the bill from consideration on two consecutive days. There have also been a couple of substitute bills offered up on the floor of the Senate, but rather than vote on those, the Senate chose to pass by the legislation.

That suggests that SB 240 also doesn’t have the votes to pass, at least in its current form. Rather than engage in an intra-party fight over the bill on the Senate floor, however, Democrats want to try to hash out the details in caucus. Interestingly enough, I’m hearing that one of the biggest opponents of the bill at the moment among Democrats is Sen. Joe Morrissey, a longtime supporter of gun control. Before he was disbarred, Morrissey was a criminal defense attorney, and my sources say he has problems with the lack of due process in the bill. Morrissey himself has said the bill needs some work, though he didn’t get more specific than that.

Gun Rationing

A bill limiting handgun purchases to one per month was approved by the Virginia State Senate earlier this week, but not before the original legislation was amended to make it slightly less awful. SB 69 isn’t nice at all, but if it becomes law then Virginia will revert back to laws that were in place from the mid 1990s through 2012. The bill was amended to exempt concealed carry licensees from the law, which may have the ironic and unintended effect of increasing the number of Virginians exercising their right to bear arms. This bill is now in a House committee.

Universal Background Checks

Another bill that has passed the Senate, but not without major revisions that have made gun control groups unhappy. Democrat Chap Petersen was successful in passing a substitute measure in the Senate Public Safety committee that dramatically changed the bill.

Before the changes SB 70 would have criminalized most private transfers and sales of firearms unless a background check was conducted beforehand. Now the bill only applies to sales of firearms, but there are no exemptions for family members or others you might now. This means that you could give a gun to your brother for Christmas without having to use an FFL to conduct a background check, but if you sold him a rifle before deer season you would have to visit a gun store and have them transfer the firearm.

As you can imagine, this bill is nearly impossible to enforce, whether we’re talking about the original language or Petersen’s substitute. I suspect this bill will be challenged in court if it’s signed by Gov. Northam, but I also expect we’ll see few if any arrests for violating this law even if it goes into effect.

SB 70 is currently in the House awaiting a committee vote.

Firearms Preemption

This is probably the worst of the bills that have passed out of the state Senate to date. SB 35 would begin to gut Virginia’s firearm preemption laws and allow for localities to ban lawfully carried firearms at permitted events, as well as ban gun shows in government owned buildings or on property owned or leased by localities. It would also allow for cities, towns, and counties in Virginia to sue firearms manufacturers.

This bill is also awaiting a vote in a House committee. I suspect it will eventually pass in some form and be signed by the governor. It may also face a court challenge, but it’s important to remember that the bill empowers localities to set some new gun control laws, but it doesn’t require them to do so. This is where Virginia’s 130+ Second Amendment Sanctuary localities come into play, as well as the local gun owners that turned out by the tens of thousands to urge local lawmakers to stand in support of their rights.

Other Gun Related Bills 

There are lots of other firearm-related bills that may begin moving in the coming weeks like HB 9, which would establish a civil penalty for not reporting a firearm that is lost or stolen, HB 567 targeting the NRA range with closure, SB 353 restricting where outdoor ranges can operate, and HB 899, which would ban all non-lead ammunition in Virginia. None of these bills have been scheduled for a committee hearing at this point, but we’re certainly keeping a close eye on all of them.

Where Things Stand Right Now

Clearly the civic engagement of gun owners in Virginia is helping to mitigate some of the worst of these bills. We are having a positive impact on some pieces of legislation, and the Democrats are far from unified in what their gun control bills should look like. It’s one thing to cut a campaign ad promising “common sense gun safety measures.” It’s another thing entirely to actually write a piece of legislation that isn’t a total mess.

Virginia gun owners need to play the long game right now. They are making a difference at the state legislature, but that will likely change if there is any violence during Monday’s Lobby Day.

FOAC in the Media: The Virginia situation was the subject of the “Dimitri - Live & Dangerously Local!” radio show on Sunday 1/19 with Kim Stolfer, President of FOAC.

https://fbwat.ch/146KLtKqaQwjzs0Y

VIDEOS OF THE WEEK: Dillon’s Rule and Constitutional Rights/Freedoms

https://foac-pac.org/Videos/39

Quote of the Week: Virginia Democratic State Sen. Dave Marsden referred to citizens as "little kids" during a public forum over the weekend. 

When Marsden was caught making the statement, instead of apologizing and admitting he acted like an idiot, he released a pathetic statement.

"The Second Amendment community is very, very concerned about us approaching the problem as a mental health problem, and this is just indicative of exactly what they're talking about," Marsden said. "There are a lot of people who have mental health issues that are engaged on the current issues, and that's a concern to all of us."

https://townhall.com/tipsheet/bethbaumann/2020/01/13/gun-controlloving-dem-in-va-2a-supporters-are-little-kids-who-are-mentally-ill-n2559452

Founding Father’s Statement on Freedom:

Yours in Freedom!

Kim Stolfer, President

As a reminder, every gun owner can participate in the February 9, 2020 FOAC Monthly meeting from any PC, Mac, Linux, iOS or Android phone by clicking on the link below:

Join from PC, Mac, Linux, iOS or Android: https://zoom.us/j/256368963

One-tap Mobile: US: +19292056099,, 256368963# US (New York)

Dial by location:  +1 929 205 6099 US (New York)

Meeting ID: 256 368 963

Find your local number: https://zoom.us/u/adSioEAVyf