Firearms Policy Coalition

The Associated Press released a short statement regarding a bill in New Jersey which would increase gun regulations on domestic violence offenders. AP reports:

An Assembly panel is set to consider legislation aimed at strengthening gun prohibitions for domestic violence offenders as well as barring convicted carjackers, gang members or racketeers from buying or owning guns in New Jersey.

The Assembly’s Law and Public Safety committee is set to vote Monday on the legislation, along with another provision.

One bill requires courts to inform domestic violence convicts they are barred from gun ownership. Defendants would also have to prove they surrendered their weapons.

Read the full story at The Washington Times.

Greg Camp for Guns.com reports:

Dave Workman writing for the GunMag reports:

The Second Amendment Foundation (SAF) and Defense Distributed of Texas have joined in a federal lawsuit against the State Department that could have far-reaching implications on several constitutional grounds, alleging prior restraint by the government over online publication of information related to three-dimensional printing of arms.

The lawsuit was filed in US District Court for the Western District of Texas, Austin Division.

….The broad constitutional scope of the 3-D printing suit has already attracted the notice of almost every major media outlet and countless Internet news and commentary sources, as well as a number of important constitutional scholars. It is seen by some observers as the ultimate battle between free speech and gun control, although that may be an over-simplification of the issues In all likelihood, no matter how the district court rules in the case, either side seems willing to push it all the way to the Supreme Court. The issue is as important to the government as it is to the plaintiffs.

Read the full story at TheGunMag.com.

Dave Workman for The Examiner reports:

A new analysis of 2013 polling data on gun control that appeared yesterday on a blog from the London School of Economics and Political Science shows a majority of Democratsfavor stricter gun laws, while coincidentally this morning’s Rasmussen Reports reveals a new survey showing more Democrats think illegal immigrants should be allowed to vote.

The LSE blog, written by Kevin H. Wozniak, an assistant professor of sociology at the University of Massachusetts Boston, analyzed data from a public opinion poll taken four months after Sandy Hook. The poll was conducted jointly by CBS News and The New York Times, he noted.

The result of his analysis: “…only a majority of Democrats support making gun control laws stricter. In contrast, a majority of Republicans favor making no changes to the gun control laws that are already on the books. Independents who chose not to identify with either party resembled Republicans in their answers to this question, but a larger percentage of them supported making laws more strict.”

Read the rest of the article at The Examiner.

Chris Eger for Guns.com reports:

Texas is about to become the 45th – and most populous – state in the nation to allow some form of handgun open carry after the legislature shot off a proposal Friday to the ready pen of Gov. Greg Abbott.

The House measure, which has shuffled back and forth between that body and the state Senate in the past two months, was under threat of a Democratic filibuster this weekend which, with the current session set to end Monday, could have killed it for good.

However, after dropping language disliked by metro police chiefs in the state that would have limited the ability for law enforcement officers to stop lawful open carriers, GOP lawmakers rallied Friday and quickly passed the measure by 102-43 in the House and a 20-11 vote in the Senate, sending it to the promised signature of the governor.

Bill sponsors contend the measure, which they paint as a compromise, finally brings Texas into the club already occupied by most of the country in allowing the open carry of modern handguns.

Read the full story at Guns.com.

Allison Brophy Champion for The Star-Exponent reports:

A new state law going into effect July 1 will restore the gun rights of some convicted felons, though not without controversy.

Sponsored by Del. Michael Webert, R-Marshall, House Bill 2286 allows any person who had their rights fully restored in another state to possess firearms in Virginia. Democratic Governor Terry McAuliffe signed the bill earlier this month with no changes, amending the current law that prohibits convicted felons in Virginia from owning guns.

Webert, in supporting the restoration of gun rights, said Virginia has long sanctioned the reinstatement of voting rights for felons from other states. He quoted the first U.S. president in making his point.

Read the full story at DailyProgress.com.

Reports Tim Devaney at thehill.com:

The Justice Department plans to move forward this year with more than a dozen new gun-related regulations, according to list of rules the agency has proposed to enact before the end of the Obama administration.

The regulations range from new restrictions on high-powered pistols to gun storage requirements. Chief among them is a renewed effort to keep guns out of the hands of people who are mentally unstable or have been convicted of domestic abuse.

Gun safety advocates have been calling for such reforms since the Sandy Hook school shooting nearly three years ago in Newtown, Conn. They say keeping guns away from dangerous people is of primary importance.

Read the full story at The Hill.

This just in: we received a copy of a blistering e-mail that Chris Ewens, a retired law enforcement officer and the owner of BullsEye Tactical Firearms Training, sent to California Senator Jim Nielsen earlier this afternoon regarding Nilsen’s vote to pass the anti-gun Senate Bill 707 (a story we broke this morning).

Chris Eger for Guns.com reports:

Chris Eger for Guns.com reports:

The nation’s largest gun control group is flaunting the support of personalities such as Ethiopia Habtemariam, Aasif Mandvi, Padma Lakshmi, and Tiffani Thiessen for its upcoming gun violence awareness project.

As reported earlier by Guns.com, a coalition of celebrities, community organizations and gun control groups are asking Americans to “Wear Orange” June 2 to mark the first National Gun Violence Awareness Day. In a release Thursday, Everytown for Gun Safety announced that in all some 25 individuals described as cultural influencers and 60 U.S. mayors have signed on to the campaign.

Among these are the presidents of some major record labels and cable television programmers such as MTV and HBO.

Read the full story at Guns.com.

Lydia Wheeler for The Hill reports:

House Democrat Rep. Carolyn Maloney (N.Y.) has introduced a bill that would require gun owners to carry liability insurance.

The Firearm Risk Protection Act, unveiled Friday, would require gun buyers to have liability insurance coverage before being allowed to purchase a weapon, and would impose a fine of $10,000 if an owner is found not to have it. Service members and law enforcement officers, however, would be exempt from the requirement.

“We require insurance to own a car, but no such requirement exists for guns,” Maloney said in a statement. “The results are clear: car fatalities have declined by 25 percent in the last decade, but gun fatalities continue to rise.”

Maloney said auto insurance carriers incentivize drivers to take precautions to reduce accidents, but no such incentives exist for firearm owners.

Read the full story at The Hill.

It’s always nice to hear some good news about 2A rights. Kristen Hwang and Kate Murphy for News21 report:

California Senate Bill 707 — a wildly anti-gun bill, and perhaps the worst gun control bill currently alive in the California Legislature — was passed by the Senate’s Appropriations Committee yesterday.

Jeffrey Collins for the Associated Press reports:

A bill increasing penalties in South Carolina for repeat domestic violence offenders and banning batterers from having guns is heading to the governor’s desk.

The House voted 81-23 Thursday to accept a compromise bill. Twenty-one of the 23 votes against the bill came from Democrats who, once certain of its passage, felt they had the freedom to criticize the proposal for giving too much power to prosecutors and not doing enough to provide counseling or other help outside of the legal system.

Rep. Gilda Cobb-Hunter said something had to be done to move South Carolina down in the ranks as one of the top states for domestic violence, so a bad bill was better than no bill….The compromise also provides a lifetime gun ban for the worst abusers and has an automatic three- or 10-year ban in other cases.

Read the full report at the Daily Journal.

The Associated Press reported on Thursday:

Texas state lawmakers negotiated on Thursday a final version of a bill allowing licensed open carry of handguns, easing concerns of police and priming it for a vote that would send it to Gov. Greg Abbott.

House and Senate negotiators said they stripped out language that sought to bar police from demanding to see the license of someone carrying a gun if they had no other reason to stop them.

That provision had passed both Republican-dominated chambers by large margins, but later prompted angry rebuttal from law enforcement around the state. Police called it a “game changer” that would endanger officers and the public.

A final vote could come as early as Friday. The legislative session ends Monday.

Read the full report at Fox 7 News.

Matt Friedman for NJ Advanced Media reports:

Legislation that would toughen New Jersey’s laws against firearms possession by domestic violence offenders is beginning to advance.

The bill (A4218) — which former U.S. Rep. Gabby Giffords (D-Arizona) advocated for in a March visit to Trenton — is scheduled for a hearing in the state Assembly Law and Public Safety Committee on Monday. It would require judges to order those convicted of a domestic violence offense to sell their guns to dealers or turn them over to law enforcement within 24 hours, among other things.

….Gun rights advocates oppose the measure. Scott Bach, president of the Association of New Jersey Rifle and Pistol Clubs, wrote in an email to members Thursday that while the bill at first glance looks well-intentioned, it “seems obsessed with harassing and intimidating anyone who owns firearms and is also accused of domestic violence, even where no actual violence has occurred — which is often the case under existing New Jersey law.”

Read the full story at NJ.com.

Inland News Today reports:

Assemblywoman Melissa Melendez, R-Lake Elsinore, announced her bill, AB 150, to allow voters a chance to reinstate felony penalties for firearm theft recently reduced under Proposition 47, was held in the Assembly Appropriations Committee, effectively rendering it dead.

“The Democrats have demonstrated appalling hypocrisy today,” said Melendez, the Vice Chair of the Assembly Public Safety Committee. “The Democrats consistently enact harsher gun control laws for law-abiding citizens. Today, they made it easier for a lawbreaker to kill an innocent victim.”

Read the full report HERE.

Scott Thistle for Maine’s Sun Journal reports:

On a 21-14 vote, a bill allowing handgun owners to carry concealed weapons without permits gained approval in the Maine Senate on Thursday.

The bill, LD 652, sponsored by state Sen. Eric Brakey, R-Auburn, would do away with Maine’s requirement that an individual wanting to carry a concealed weapon first obtain a permit from Maine State Police or local officials. The permit requirement now in place requires a criminal background check, a mental health screening and evidence the individual has participated in a handgun training program.

Maine law already permits individuals to carry firearms openly in most public places where guns are not explicitly prohibited.

Read the full article at the Maine Sun Journal.

AWR Hawkins for Breitbart reports:

Andrea Noble for The Washington Times reports:

A federal judge on Thursday denied a short-term stay on a decision that blocked the District from enforcing a key provision of its restrictive concealed-carry laws — prompting the city to notify gun owners who had been denied a carry permit that they now can obtain one.

U.S. District Judge Frederick J. Scullin Jr. left open the possibility the District could obtain a stay pending appeal of his previous ruling, which called the city’s requirement that gun owners demonstrate a “good reason” to obtain a permit unconstitutional. He set a hearing on the matter for July 7.

In the meantime, the ruling means the Metropolitan Police Department may end up issuing concealed carry permits to applicants who previously had been denied because they could not demonstrate they face a specific threat of injury or harm.

This is more good news for the gun rights of D.C. residents! Read the full article at the Washington Times.