On Wednesday, April 11, the Assembly Appropriations committee passed AB 2151, making it eligible for a vote on the Assembly floor.
Assembly Bill 2151, sponsored by Assembly Member Adam Gray (D-21), would help make hunting more affordable for youths by reducing the cost of certain big game tags for youth hunters.
On Tuesday, April 10, the following actions were taken by the respective committees on both pro- and anti-gun legislation:
Senate Public Safety Committee:
The Senate Public Safety Committee failed to pass SB 1092, however the bill was granted reconsideration for a later date. SJR 24 did pass committee and will now move to the Senate Committee on Public Employment and Retirement for further consideration.
Senate Bill 1092, sponsored by Senator Joel Anderson (R-38), would allow hunting with suppressed rifles and shotguns. Sound suppressors attached to firearms (often referred to as “silencers) are an additional tool available to help protect from hearing damage, increase accuracy and safety, and reduce noise complaints from surrounding residents. Suppressors also provide some measure of reduction of felt recoil, beneficial to all shooters but, especially, younger shooters and female shooters by increasing accuracy and safety.
Senate Joint Resolution 24, sponsored by Senator Hannah-Beth Jackson (D-19), would urge the Congress of the United States to reauthorize and strengthen the federal assault weapons ban and would urge the Congress to pass, and the President to sign, the federal Assault Weapons Ban of 2018 and would call on the California Public Employee’ Retirement System (CalPERS) to divest all its holdings related to the production and sale of firearms. The reauthorization of an “assault weapons” ban would burden the self-defense rights of law-abiding Americans without meaningfully addressing the problems it’s purportedly designed to address, it would not impact overall gun death rates, and there is no evidence it would prevent mass shootings.
Assembly Public Safety Committee:
AB 2860 was not heard by the Committee and has been rescheduled for next Tuesday, April 17.
Assembly Bill 2860, sponsored by Assembly Member Travis Allen (R-72), would repeal the “roster” requirements for handguns to be sold through firearms dealers. Firearms that are not on the roster are not inherently unsafe. In fact law enforcement is generally exempt from the handgun roster. Instead of weeding out unsafe firearms, the roster has served to limit the number of handgun models that are available for sale in California by requiring certain features and testing, some which are not offered by any manufacturers. Because of the roster requirements, no new model semi-automatic handguns have been added to the roster in over five years. By removing the roster requirement, Californian’s will have increased options when it comes to exercising their Second Amendment rights.
Assembly Water, Parks and Wildlife Committee:
AB 2670 was passed by the Assembly Water Parks and Wildlife Committee and will move to the Assembly Appropriations Committee for further consideration.
Assembly Bill 2670, sponsored by Assembly Member Kevin Kiley (R-6), would require the Director of the Department of Fish and Wildlife to declare two free hunting days per year. Hunters play a vital role in wildlife management and conservation efforts. Unfortunately, over the past 20 years the number of California hunters has been on the decline. The goal of this bill is to encourage those interested to try hunting before investing time and money and would further the current R3 (recruitment, retention and reactivation) efforts by the Department of Fish and Wildlife.
Continue to check your inbox and the California Stand and Fight web page for updates on issues impacting your Second Amendment rights and hunting heritage in California.
