On Tuesday, Feb 7, the Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee took several hours of testimony on three anti-gun bills that have serious implications for sportsmen.
Senate Bill 1 prohibits sportsmen from wearing, carrying, or transporting a firearm onto the real property of another unless the other has given certain permission to the person or the public generally; and prohibits sportsmen from wearing, carrying, or transporting a firearm within 100 feet of a place of public accommodation. This legislation needs no explanation because it clearly prohibits sportsmen and gun owners from carrying a firearm on many places they currently hunt and shoot.
Senate Bill 86 prohibits the sale, rent, transfer, and loan of a rifle or shotgun, with very limited exceptions, AND ammunition to young adults under the age of 21. SB 86 does not stop there as it also prohibits the possession of a rifle or shotgun by young adults under the age of 21. There is no credible evidence that such restrictions reduce violent crime.
Senate Bill 113, the companion bill to HB 259, authorizes the Attorney General and others to sue firearms manufacturers for the violent acts of third parties. This legislation will cripple the firearm industry by instituting new policies and procedures that will make it nearly impossible to engage in the lawful sale and/or trade of firearms in the state. This is bad policy motivated by those who simply want to destroy the sporting community because they know that if the industry cannot engage in lawful commerce, hunters and sport shooters cannot hunt and shoot.
The committee has not released the next hearing date on these bills. The Sportsmen’s Alliance will be monitoring the committee calendar and will inform you as soon as that day and time has been published. In the meantime, check out our legislative map to view the other legislation we are monitoring in Maryland and throughout the nation.
About Sportsmen’s Alliance: Working in all 50 state legislatures, the Sportsmen’s Alliance protects and defends America’s wildlife conservation programs and the pursuits – hunting, fishing, trapping and recreational shooting – that generate the money to pay for them. Sportsmen’s Alliance Foundation is responsible for public and youth education, legal defense in state and federal court and research to guide the decision-making process of all involved. Its mission is accomplished through several distinct programs coordinated to provide the most complete defense capability possible. Stay connected to Sportsmen’s Alliance at www.sportsmensalliance.org, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
