Today is "Crossover" day at the Legislature, a day where most bills need to be voted out of committee in order to move to the other chamber to perhaps become law.
While anything and everything can change when a bill moves to the other chamber, this is where we stand now on 3 key bills.
On the Firearms Rights side of things, the bill of concern was H.606 - the "Omnibus Firearms Bill."
In an unprecedented win for the VTFSC, we were - with your enormous help - able to get section 5 killed before it was even introduced. That section would have allowed almost every one of us to become exposed to "Public Nuisance" lawsuits, even when all laws were followed and there was no intent of harm. It was both absurd and insidious.
We were able to get any reference to "rapid fire devices" removed, in favor of clear wording that the states that the making of, or possession of, an illegal machine gun is a crime. This parallels existing Federal Law.
While we all support prosecuting someone who steals: We made the point, and won, that there are some firearms (antiques and Black Powder) that should not automatically be treated as a felony if stolen, but still prosecutable as theft based on their value, not "any firearm of any value."
We still have an issue with Section 3 (Prohibited Person), but we can and will address that in Senate Judiciary.
H.606 has definitely moved in the positive direction.
S.224, a bill primarily dealing with Wake Boats and lake contamination, but also initially stepped on our preemption statute, did not make it out of committee; it's a wall hanger.
H.723, a posting bill, at one point was moving in the direction of adopting "purple paint" as a posting mechanism, but that consideration was removed thru efforts of the VTFSC, VTC and others; posting term was clarified; and it will no longer make posted land illegally posted if something as simple as a sign falls down.
So Far: Very Good, we will be shepherding H.606 and H.723 as they move to the Senate.
While time will be short by the time you get this: PLEASE be aware that the VTFSC Annual Banquet (a major fund-raiser for us) is tomorrow, March 14. Information on the Banquet is here, with a sign-up form here. There will be many firearms to win, a delicious dinner, a Calcutta event with significant cash and other prizes and you'll be in GREAT COMPANY! Respond to this email if interested, we need to insure meals for all!
If you like what we do to protect your rights, you can donate to our efforts using this page, and please forward this to your like-minded friends and family.
