House Bill 1215 remains in the tied up in the Senate Judiciary Committee, where a hearing date has yet to be set.  Please continue to contact the members of the committee and urge them to oppose this divisive piece of legislation.  H

B1215, sponsored by State Representative Barry Hyde (D-40), would dramatically increase the potential penalties a municipality may levy for the “unsafe discharge of a firearm.”   This legislation unfairly singles out violators of discharge ordinances to be potentially charged with an unclassified misdemeanor, potential fines up to $10,000 (20 times greater than the law allows for other ordinance violations, and equal to the federal fine for possessing an unregistered machine gun), and potential jail time for as long as 90 days.  While there are certainly places where discharging a firearm may not be appropriate, this penalty treats discharge violations in a disproportionate manner.  The potential penalty for all other purely municipal ordinance violations--no matter how dangerous the behavior might be--would remain $500 for a first offense. 

Please contact the members of the Senate Judiciary Committee TODAY and respectfully urge them to oppose HB1215.  Committee members can be contacted through the email addresses listed below or via phone at (501) 682-2902.

State Senator Ed Wilkinson (D-6), Chairman