Category: Pennsylvania

The bill HB1845, which contains a provision to eliminate the administrative ban on carrying firearms in state parks, as well as passes “Katrina” legislation, preventing authorities from confiscating firearms in a State of Emergency, has passed the house.  In fact, it passed the house while myself, and several other Pennsylvania Firearms Owners Association members watched from The House Gallery at the Capitol in Harrisburg.

Predictably, Philadelphia media is spinning this as a victory for gun control because of the provisions it has stiffening penalties for possessing a firearm with an altered or obliterated serial number.  No doubt the anti-gun forces in that city are following the Brady Campaign model, where if you can’t win, you can claim to win, and it’s just as good.

The vote was unnanimous, 200 to nil.  The only representative who got up to say anything negative about it was Kathy Manderino, who wanted to point out the problems she saw with the provision to issue emergency concealed carry licenses, and to remind everyone that the Coalition Against Domestic Violence is opposed to this bill.  Why they are, I can’t imagine, since how is it not empowering to women to be able to successfully defend themselves against a man who means to rape, gravely injure, or murder them.  One has to ponder what these groups think of the women they claim to represent, that they don’t believe them capable of making wise decisions in regards to their own personal security.   Nontheless, I guess Rep. Manderino’s objections weren’t that strong, because she didn’t vote against final passage.

Amendments passed to HB 1845:

This, overall, is a good deal for gun owners. The Philly politicians are getting several new tools they can use to go after criminal trafficking of firearms. We will, of course, want to see Philadelphia actually using these laws on criminals. It does no good to not enforce them, and then come back bitching to gun owners they need more controls. This bill gives them some good things, and they need to use them.

We contacted our reps to tell them to oppose the Lost and Carry bill, and it made quite a difference. Now it’s time to contact them and encourage them to support final passage of HB 1845.

A vote happened on House Bill 1845 tonight.  The Lost and Stolen amendment went down in flames 75-128.  In it’s place, an amendment was filed that makes it a crime to falsely report a firearm as stolen, and this amendment passed.  The “emergency powers” amendment was also passed, along with a provision to get rid of the ban on carry in state parks.  A final vote on the bill will happen tomorrow.  Needless to say, we want to support passage of this bill as amendment.

Great work by the NRA, and all the other groups who were involved, and all the individual citizens who called their state representatives, in defeating the Lost and Stolen bill, and making sure gun owners got something out of it.  I certainly won’t complain about the state park provision!

UPDATE: Looks like we didn’t get castle doctrine, but I’m hearing that will get another committee hearing.

NRA Alerts that the HB 1845 could be voted on as soon as Wednesday, and there is still an attempt to get the “Lost and Stolen” bill attached to it:

Anti-gun State Representative David Levdansky (D-39) may try to amend this legislation to include a provision that would require gun owners to report the loss or theft of a firearm to law enforcement. The amendment would create criminal penalties for the failure to report a lost or stolen firearm.  This amendment was debated last week on the House floor, but no vote was taken.

Please contact your State Representative TODAY and respectfully urge him or her to oppose the amendment proposed by State Representative Levdansky, and any other amendments that threaten the rights of Pennsylvania’s law-abiding gun owners. For contact information for your State Representative, please click here.

If I sound like a broken record with the “contact your reps” crap, it’s because it’s really really important.  I contact mine so much I almost expect him to know me by name when I am introduced to him next Monday.

According to today’s session report for the Pennsylvania General Assembly, Representative Levdansky has withdrawn one amendment, A06178, from consideration. Should be noted that this is not the “Lost and Stolen” amendment, but one relating to the original bill, that has to do with altered obliterated serial numbers.  Doesn’t say anything about whether “Lost and Stolen” was considered today, though it was supposed to be on the agenda.  I’ll let folks know when I know more.

What happened can be described in this AP article.  My information was incorrect:

Rep. Bryan Cutler, R-Lancaster, withdrew from the House floor a pending constitutional challenge to legislation that would require owners to report within 72 hours when they realize a handgun has been lost or stolen. Cutler said he would withdraw the constitutional question because of House scheduling needs, but intended to renew it whenever the gun measure comes back before the chamber, perhaps as early as Tuesday.

Sorry folks, I try to be more reliable, but it was hard to tell from the state’s web site exactly what was going on.

UPDATE: The vote on all this is apparently going to be on Wednesday.  It’s looking good, but we need to keep the pressure on.

We’re running a very real risk of getting stuck with the Lost and Stolen gun provision, which will make crime victims criminally liable for having guns go missing or get stolen that they failed to notify authorities about.  Nine suburban GOP state reps are getting on board with this:

Nine Philadelphia-area Republicans signaled last week they would break ranks with their caucus today and support handgun-control legislation when the state House of Representatives resumes debate on a controversial proposal.

The measure, which would require reporting handguns that are lost or stolen, has been vigorously pushed by Democrats in Philadelphia and Pittsburgh as a “common sense” restriction that would reduce gun violence.

Through a legislative maneuver this month, gun-control proponents attached the proposal as an amendment to a separate weapons bill, setting up a possible historic full House vote on a substantive gun-control bill.

They couldn’t get this through committee, so they decided to go the route of adding to a house bill that’s already on the floor.  Here’s what some of our legislators have to say about it:

“I don’t know if it will get any illegal guns off the streets,” Perzel said. “I don’t believe it will have any effect.”

Rep. John Taylor (R., Phila.) said he, too, was a “yes” vote, but he said he was concerned about the potential consequences for law-abiding citizens who fail to report their weapons and who could face criminal charges.

“There is enough sentiment out there that this will really impact regular Joes and that the crackhead going to make straw purchases isn’t going to be affected in the least.”

But, Taylor added, “We have a big enough problem in Philly that I’ll try anything.”

They’ll try anything, even if it means we have to throw “everyday Joe’s” in prison, or subject them to steep fines.  Yeah, that’s the kind of government I want to live under, “We have to do something, even if it’s the wrong thing!” Write your reps and tell them to oppose this crap, especially if any of them are features in this article.  Write your senators too.  Even if this nonsense passes the house, there’s a chance of defeating it in the Senate, which is more friendly than the Democrat controlled house.