Practically, a day to the year, another “sin” tax bill on sportsmen is scheduled to be heard in Maryland. A “sin” tax is levied on specific goods believed to be harmful to society, and gun-control advocates are not shy about blaming sportsmen and gun owners for the state’s violent crime issues.
Tomorrow, February 13, at 1 p.m., in the House Office Building, room 130, the House Ways and Means Committee is scheduled to hear not one “sin” tax bill, but two, House Bill 387 and House Bill 937.
It seems that gun-control advocates believe lawfully using a firearm and ammunition is engaging in morally and socially harmful behavior. They are also not shy about blaming sportsmen for the state’s violent crime issues by setting up funding programs to pay for the criminal activities of others.
House Bill 387, the Comprehensive Community Safety Funding Act, imposes an 11% excise tax on firearms dealers derived from the sales of firearms in the state. The monies from the excise tax will go towards funding programs whose sole purpose is to pay for gun violence prevention, research, healing and recovery programs.
House Bill 937 imposes a 12% excise tax on firearms dealers derived from the sales of firearms, firearm accessories and ammunition in the state.
We all know how this works: dealers will have no choice but to add the 11% and 12% tax onto our purchase of firearms, firearm accessories and ammunition, forcing law-abiding sportsmen to foot the bill for the violent acts of criminals.
Please use our Take Action button to email the committee members urging them to vote “No” on HB 387 and HB 937. The committee needs to hear the opposition from the sportsmen’s community, letting them know we are not the problem and these bills will do nothing to address the root cause of Maryland’s violent crime: criminals not respecting human life or the laws.
Don’t forget to share this alert with your family, friends, and fellow sportsmen. Ask them to Take Action and email the committee, and urge them to vote “No” on HB 387 and HB 937.We each must make a commitment to ourselves and future generations to stand up and fight, protect and defend against the rising tide of animal extremism. They work tirelessly to crater our rights, values and heritage and we must work harder to ensure they are secure today.
The Sportsmen’s Alliance guarantees hunting, fishing and trapping for the American sportsman now and forever. We’re there when sportsmen need us most. We are the only organization specifically created to protect the individual hunter, angler and trapper – no matter the threat. We will never compromise when it comes to defending our way of life in the courts, in the legislatures, in the public square and at the ballot box. We make this promise to the American sportsman: we will never give up and never give in while proudly securing our future against those seeking to destroy our values, beliefs, and traditions. Stay connected to Sportsmen’s Alliance: Online, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
