U.S. House Votes to Protect D.C. Residents’ Right to Keep and Bear Arms

On Wednesday, U.S. Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) attached an amendment to a bill providing funding to the District of Columbia that would prohibit the District from expending any funds to enforce certain gun control laws.  The amendment passed 241-181.  The amendment blocks enforcement of the Firearms Registration Amendment Act of 2008, the Inoperable Pistol Amendment Act of 2008, the Firearms Amendment Act of 2012, and the Administrative Disposition of Weapons Act of 2012.     

NRA has long supported efforts by Congress to protect the Second Amendment rights of D.C. residents.  D.C. politicians have decried these efforts as an attempt by the federal government to intercede in local matters, but a general preference for local regulation in the United States does not trump the civil rights of residents of the District.  Since 1999 NRA has supported a number of bills to protect the rights of D.C. residents, including an amendment to H.R. 2122 (1999) to repeal certain D.C. gun laws, H.R. 3193 (2004) to limit the D.C. Council’s authority to regulate firearms, an amendment to H.R. 3058 to limit funding to enforce D.C.’s gun ban, and various versions of the Second Amendment Enforcement Act (SAEA).  The most recent version of the SAEA is H.R. 3689, sponsored by Rep. Jim Jordon (R-Ohio). This bill contains a number of measures to bring the District’s laws on the acquisition and possession of firearms in line with the rest of the country, where the Second Amendment is widely respected. 

It’s unfortunate that the D.C. Council has so little regard for the constitutional rights of their constituents that federal intervention is required.  As long as the Council and Mayor’s Office deny the Second Amendment rights of D.C. residents and visitors, NRA will continue to support federal proposals aimed at protecting those rights.  Please contact your U.S. Representative and ask him or her to cosponsor and support H.R. 3689 to protect the right to keep and bear arms in our nation’s capitol. 

You can contact your U.S. Representative by using the "Write Your Lawmakers" tool at www.NRAILA.org, or by phone at (202) 225-3121.