Lawmakers in the state of Washington have begun reviewing a range of gun control proposals that covers several areas including licenses for ownership of semi-automatic rifles, gun storage and gun sales.
Jeff Potter, program policy director for the Alliance for Gun Responsibilities observed that the Senate Law and Justice Committee was finally hearing gun responsibility bills that hadn’t been ever heard previously.
He pointed out that a bill had been recently removed “at the request of “ the gun lobby, so the fact that these hearings were taking place itself was “a sea change from where we were just a few years ago.”
Several testifiers including two families affected by the Las Vegs shooting along with volunteers have arrived in Olympia for the Senate hearings.
Numerous Areas Being Considered
Some of the major bills being discussed are:
- SB 5444 mandates an assault weapon license for owning an assault weapon or a large-capacity magazine. It will also bar non-state residents from purchasing assault weapons or large-capacity magazines in Washington.
- SB 6146 gives local governments in Washington state more freedom to develop their own gun control regulations.
- SB 5463 enhances the penalties for those gun owners who fail to store a gun safely. The proposal will require anyone who sells a gun to also offer a lockbox.
- SB 5992 tackles trigger modification devices.
- SB 6049 deals with high capacity magazines.
Those against the measures have told the lawmakers on the Senate Law and Justice Committee that law-abiding gun owners will be punished by the bills.
Hearings Drawing Crowds
The two-hour hearing held earlier this week drew almost 1,000 people, which led to security setting up additional overflow committee rooms. Many attending wore orange shirts or scarves and stickers bearing the message “Gun Responsibility Now!” while others wore shirts that read “NRA Stand and Fight.”