NEW MEXICO GOVERNOR SIGNS
NRA-BACKED RIGHT-TO-CARRY REFORM BILL INTO LAW
On April 6, New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson (D) signed House Bill 641, the Right-to-Carry Reform Bill, into law while visiting the NRA Whittington Center in Raton. This NRA-backed legislation improves New Mexico`s existing Right-to-Carry laws and expands access to licenses by more law-abiding New Mexicans.
"These changes will encourage more law- abiding New Mexicans to apply for a license and protect themselves in a lawful, responsible manner," stated NRA-ILA Executive Director Chris W. Cox.
New Mexico`s Right-to-Carry Reform Bill reduces the minimum age for permit applicants from 25 to 21, which will expand licensing opportunities to law-abiding gun owners previously prohibited from obtaining a Right-to-Carry license.
The bill also increases the lifespan of the license from two to four years. Additionally, it allows the Department of Public Safety to enter into reciprocal agreements with other Right-to-Carry states.
"On behalf of NRA and our state affiliate, the New Mexico Shooting Sports Association, I`d like to thank Governor Richardson for his strong support in seeing this bill become law," continued Cox. "Thank you also to Representative John Heaton
(D-55) and Senator Shannon Robinson (D-17), as well as the New Mexico Department of Public Safety for their sponsorship and testimony for this bill in the legislature. New Mexico has heard and honored the will of the people to improve Right-to-Carry, and the NRA and our members are grateful to all who stood up for our Second Amendment freedoms."
The law will take effect on June 17. Thank you for your calls and e-mails during the legislative session to help pass HB 41!
HELP SAVE THE FIREARM INDUSTRY
CONTINUE YOUR SUPPORT FOR S. 397 AND H.R. 800
As you know, "The Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act" was introduced this year as S. 397 in the U.S. Senate, and H.R. 800 in the U.S. House. This critically important, NRA-backed legislation would protect law-abiding firearm manufacturers from reckless, predatory, and potentially bankrupting lawsuits.
In 2003, the "Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act" passed the U.S. House of Representatives on an overwhelming bipartisan vote of 285-140, enjoyed more than 50 Senate cosponsors, and had the full support of President Bush. Sadly, the legislation was torpedoed in the Senate in 2004 by anti-gun zealots, including former Minority Leader Tom Daschle (D-S.D.), who helped his fellow anti-gun Senators attach a number of anti-gun amendments to the underlying measure.
It is imperative that you continue to contact your U.S. Senators and your U.S. Representative and ask them to cosponsor and support S.397 and H.R. 800--without any anti-gun amendments--and put a halt to these reckless lawsuits once and for all. Again, please be sure to let them know that you consider any votes in support of anti-gun amendments to this legislation as votes against the bill itself.
To access the most up-to-date information on this issue, please go to the "Stop Reckless Lawsuits Against the Firearm Industry" heading at, www.NRAILA.org. This function will allow you to easily send an e-mail or letter to your U.S. Representative and U.S. Senators. Please forward this link to your family, friends, and fellow firearm owners.
For additional information on effectively communicating with your lawmakers, please go to: http://www.nraila.org/CurrentLegislation/ActionAlerts/Default.aspx (Grassroots Alert, Vol. 12, No. 12).
ACT NOW TO STOP PROPOSED
SAN FRANCISCO GUN BAN
San Francisco is attempting to place a ballot measure before its voters this November banning handguns. The measure would strip any citizen of his or her right to own a handgun for any reason. Only law enforcement officers, members of the military, and security guards would be allowed to possess them. The measure would also completely ban the sale, manufacture, and distribution of all handguns and ammunition in San Francisco, as well as the transfer of shotguns and rifles. If passed in November, city residents would be forced to surrender their firearms within 90 days.
Over the past few decades, California has served as a laboratory for gun control experiments. And very often, sadly, what happens out west tends to drift eastward to other pockets of the United Sates. So not only would passage of the handgun ban have dire consequences for San Franciscans, but it would also no doubt serve as a harbinger for similar bans for other Americans outside of San Francisco who live under the fist of anti-gun city officials.
We will keep you posted on relevant developments on this issue in these pages and elsewhere. In the meantime, however, NRA members and supporters in San Francisco need to ensure their voter registration is current, and actively work to register other opponents to the handgun ban as well. For information on voter registration, please visit www.NRAILA.org and visit the "Register to Vote" section. Finally, for those of you who reside outside of San Francisco, but who know pro-gun supporters living within the city, you need to ensure they are aware of this onerous proposal and are currently registered to vote.
NRA`s 2005 ANNUAL MEETINGS AND EXHIBITS
This year`s Annual Meetings and Exhibits will be held at the George R. Brown Convention Center in Houston, Texas, from April 15-17, 2005.
In conjunction with our showcase event, the NRA-ILA Grassroots Division will host a FREE Grassroots Workshop. This Workshop has been a regular part of NRA`s Annual Meetings for more than a decade.
With our victories in the 2004 elections, we must now work to ensure that our electoral successes last year are transformed into legislative victories this year. Among our pro-freedom legislative priorities are: ending reckless lawsuits against the gun industry, repealing the D.C. gun ban, lifting restrictions on law-abiding gun owners, and much more. And of course, we must remain eternally vigilant in beating back assaults on our freedom, as the anti-gunners are still pushing legislation to ban guns and ammunition, to shut down gun shows, and to further whittle away our Second Amendment rights. Your attendance at this year`s NRA-ILA Grassroots Workshop in Houston is an important step toward ensuring the future of our gun rights.
At this FREE Workshop, NRA-ILA staff and NRA Officers will discuss how you can take on an even more active role in your community in our mutual fight to advance and protect our cherished freedoms, and we will provide you with the materials and strategies you will need to educate and empower your fellow gun owners as well.
Workshop details are:
Friday, April 15, 2005, 9:00 a.m. - 12:00 Noon
(Registration and free continental breakfast from 8:00 a.m. - 9:00 a.m. in Grand Ballroom Pre-function)
Hilton Americas--Houston, Grand Ballrooms A & B
1600 Lamar St., Houston, TX 77010
(713) 651-3900
Please encourage your family, friends and fellow firearm owners to attend as well.
To register for the Workshop, call the NRA-ILA Grassroots Division at (800) 392-8683, or on-line at: www.nraila.org/workshops/.
A LOOK AT THE STATES
(****For all of the action items below, you can find contact information for your legislators by using the "Write Your Representatives" tool at www.NRAILA.org****)
COLORADO
On April 5, the Senate passed HB 1266, a bill that would require all hunters between the ages of 19 and 64 to purchase a Colorado Wildlife Habitat Stamp in addition to their regular hunting license before entering public wildlife areas. Hunters currently pay for access to these public lands through license fees and special taxes, so this additional fee places an unnecessary financial burden on those residents who already pay their fair share into the system. Worse yet, there is no guarantee that lands purchased from the proceeds of the stamp will even be open to hunting! Please call and e-mail your elected officials and let them know that HB 1266 is unacceptable in its current form. Ask them to exempt hunters from purchasing the Wildlife Habitat Stamp in addition to their regular hunting licenses AND ensure that all lands purchased by the state with funds raised from the sale of the Wildlife Habitat Stamp be open to hunting. Please urge your legislators to include the above changes when considering HB 1266. You can call House members at (800) 811-7647 and members of the Senate at (888) 473-8136.
CONNECTICUT
The deadline for the Judiciary Committee to act on three anti-gun bills is next Friday, April 15. Due to the largely anti-gun makeup of the Judiciary Committee, these bills are expected to be approved and sent to the Public Safety Committee. SB 1029 would require a local permit for retail sale of firearms. This bill is designed to allow localities to prevent federally licensed firearms dealers from engaging in the lawful business of selling rifles and shotguns. HB 6743 would impose criminal penalties for failure to report the loss or theft of a firearm. In addition to containing components identical to the aforementioned bills, HB 6657 includes provisions that would require registration of sales of all firearms, mandatory trigger locks with sale of all firearms, and would place long guns under the same restrictions as handguns for the purposes of sale or transfer. This would mean a NICS check would be required for all transactions, including a transfer from father to son for the purpose of hunting. We will continue to keep you posted on further action. Please contact your lawmakers to voice strong opposition to these three bills.
ILLINOIS
The Illinois General Assembly returned from break this week, and firearm-related legislation is in the spotlight. In the House, pro-gun bills awaiting a vote by the full chamber are: HB 136, which establishes remedies for law-abiding citizens should their application for a FOID card take longer than 30 days; HB 340, which eliminates the waiting period requirement when trading one firearm for another; HB 341, which deals with gun shows, destruction of records on law-abiding gun owners maintained by the Illinois State Police, and statewide preemption of local gun laws (except in the City of Chicago); HB 478, which would require any local ordinance prohibiting firearms to include an exception for self-defense; HB 716, which clarifies when the waiting period on firearm purchases begins; HB 824, which requires the return of seized firearms when a defendant is found not guilty or charges are dismissed; HB 935, which requires the destruction of records on individuals when a firearm transfer has not been denied; HB 936, which preempts local municipalities from enacting their own restrictions on rifles and shotguns; HB 937 which preempts local municipalities from enacting their own restrictions on firearms used for hunting; HB 2567, which would establish a Right-to-Carry permit system; HB 2568, which preempts local municipalities (except for Chicago) from enacting their own restrictions on rifles and shotguns; and HB 2607, another Right-to-Carry bill. On the anti-gun side, legislation pending a floor vote in the House includes: HB 794, an attack on gun shows; HB 990, which would create the bureaucratic redundancy of requiring all FFL holders to also be licensed as a firearm dealer by the state; HB 1098, which seeks to ban .50 cal. rifles and ammunition; HB 1349, a so-called "smart gun" bill; HB 2414, which seeks to ban certain semi-automatic firearms; and HB 3849, which seeks to allow reckless lawsuits against gun dealers. In the Senate, pro-gun legislation includes: SB 56 and SB 57, each of which are similar to HB 341; SB 2103, a range protection bill; and SB 2104, which seeks to eliminate restrictions on transporting firearms imposed by municipalities. On the anti-gun side, there is SB 546, an attack on gun shows. Of course, other threats could emerge, so please be sure to contact your lawmakers and urge them to support our Right to Keep and Bear Arms by supporting the pro-gun bills mentioned above, and opposing bills that attack our freedom. To contact your lawmakers, please call (217) 782-2000.
KANSAS
Thanks to your calls, an NRA-backed preemption bill, SB 195, passed both the House and Senate and now heads to the Governor`s desk for signing. Please contact Governor Kathleen Sebelius (D) and respectfully urge her to sign SB 195. Let her know this legislation will eliminate the unfair patchwork of local firearm ordinances across Kansas while protecting law-abiding citizens from fines and prosecution under the current system. To contact the Governor, please call (785) 296-3232.
NEBRASKA
LB 454, also known as the "Concealed Handgun Permit Act," will be voted on the floor in the upcoming weeks. Please contact your Senator and urge him or her to support a cloture vote on this important legislation. Your phone call can help make Right-to-Carry a reality in the Cornhusker State! To contact your Senator, please call (402) 271 2271.
NEW YORK
State Senator Eric Schneiderman`s (D-Manhattan) motion to discharge his anti-gun bill from committee has failed. The GOP-led Senate defeated Schneiderman`s motion to discharge S 2445, which seeks to expand the state`s current ban on "assault weapons," from the Senate Codes Committee. This bill would outlaw many more guns by name and would add specific features to the definition of what constitutes an illegal "assault weapon." On the Senate Calendar for April 11 is S 918, an NRA-supported measure that would allow the use of rifles for hunting in certain parts of the state. Please call your Senators and urge them to support S 918. On Tuesday, April 12, the Assembly Codes Committee is set to consider A 2837, which would make it a crime to possess so-called armor-piercing or frangible ammunition. Please contact your member of the Assembly Codes Committee and urge them to oppose A 2837. For a list of committee members and their phone numbers, please contact NRA-ILA`s Grassroots Division at (800)392-8683.
OREGON
HB 2529, the NRA-backed "No Net Loss of Public Hunting Land" bill, is scheduled for a hearing April 13, before the House Agriculture and Natural Resource Committee. The hearing will be held in Hearing Room C at 9:00 a.m. If you are unable to attend this hearing, please contact members of the committee at (503) 986-1674 and ask them to support HB 2529. For a list of committee members, please contact NRA-ILA`s Grassroots Division at (800)392-8683. In addition, local NRA-ILA Election Volunteer Coordinator (EVC) Curt Greer (OR-4) needs your help in supporting our Armed Forces. Curt entered a float in last year`s Veteran`s Day Parade representing NRA and the award-winning Eddie Eagle Gun Safe Program®. The event was a huge success, and the crowd was very enthusiastic about the presence of NRA in the local parade. The Armed Forces Day Parade is important this year so that we may show support for the troops returning from the war. Volunteers are needed to help assemble the float and to also participate in the parade. The parade will begin on Main Street, in Cottage Grove, on May 21, at 9:00 a.m. To volunteer your time for this worthy event, or for additional information, please contact Curt Greer by phone at (541) 746-7806 or by e-mail at [email protected].
VIRGINIA
In a continuing battle over the constitutional rights of hunters, a local government is attempting to redefine hunting in the Commonwealth of Virginia. In a recent development in the escalating saga involving the Nelson County, VA, Board of Supervisors and Orion Sporting Group LLC, the county has now filed a subpoena for a list of gun owners and hunters who were interested in participating in Orion`s pheasant hunts held last month. On March 24, 2005, the Honorable Michael Gamble dismissed Nelson County`s request for an injunction against Orion which sought to prevent Orion`s hunter safety procedures. Now, the desperate county Board has taken to harassing not only the Orion Group, but they`ve also signaled their intentions to invade the privacy of Virginia sportsmen! On April 13, 2005, at 12:00 p.m. in the Lovingston Courthouse, Judge Gamble will preside over a hearing to consider the county`s motion to redefine hunting, as well as to dismiss Orion`s suit against the county over the constitutional right to hunt. The right to hunt in Virginia, like many other states, is protected and legislated by the General Assembly according to the Virginia constitution. Yet, a defiant Nelson County persists in its attacks on Virginia`s sportsmen and the constitutionally protected right to hunt! Virginia NRA members and sportsmen, please contact the Nelson County Board of Supervisors and strongly urge them to stop their attacks on hunting in Virginia. Contact information for the Nelson County government can be found at: www.orionestate.com/alert.html -- and please be sure to share this information with your family, friends and fellow sportsmen!
WISCONSIN
NRA-ILA is looking for volunteers to attend the Conservation Congress on April 11, and speak on behalf of three issues on the ballot that are of critical concern to hunters. Even if you don`t want to volunteer, please attend the Congress and vote on these issues on Monday, April 11, at 7:00 p.m. Questions 47, 67, and 68 would support lowering the hunting age from 12 to 10, and permit mentored youth hunting. Statistics have shown that this is a safe option in all 30 states that have similar laws. For a list of meeting locations, please visit www.NRAILA.org. If you would like to volunteer, please call our Grassroots Division at (800) 392-8683.
