Allegheny County Sportsmen’s League Legislative Committee Report July 2009 Issue 177 ALLEGHENY COUNTY SPORTSMEN LEAGUE ON THE INTERNET http://www.acslpa.org Contacts : Legislative Committee Chairman , Kim Stolfer (412.221.3346) - [email protected] Legislative Committee Vice-Chairman, Mike Christeson - [email protected] §6111. Sale or transfer of firearms. PA State Police ( aka Rendell) (1.4) Following implementation of the instantaneous records check by the Pennsylvania State Police on or before to DEMAND December 1, 1998, no application/record of sale shall be completed for the purchase or transfer of a firearm which AR-15 Rifle Registration exceeds the barrel lengths set forth in section 6102 . The situation with AR-15 rifles is as follows : §6102. Definitions. over the past several months I've been informed by "Firearm ." . .any shotgun with a barrel length less than 18 inches or any rifle with a barrel length less than 16 inches, or gun dealers across the state of Pennsylvania that the any pistol, revolver, rifle or shotgun with an overall length of Pennsylvania State police have been informing them less than 26 inches. that they must now register AR-15 rifles and other identifying information on the record of sale form just As you can see from the above sections of law, the like they do with handguns. The interesting part of Pennsylvania State Police have NO authority or this is that they are failed to provide anything in justification for this new policy. Frankly this is a writing. As time has progressed the Pennsylvania war that is being conducted and waged against gun State police have been informing dealers that the owners in this state that originates directly from the release of this radical, illegal shift in policy would be executive office mansion and Ed Rendell. forthcoming in the FFL dealer’s newsletter in mid It is, and has been, our position that the July. Pennsylvania Instant Check System ( PICS ) is an Fast forward to this week ; two days ago I was anachronism and an unnecessarily expensive informed by George Romanoff of Ace Sporting distraction in this modern age and needs to be Goods and a representative of the National Shooting disbanded. We can turn over the functions of firearms Sports Foundation that gun dealers would be notified instant checks to the National Instant Check System of this new policy within two weeks. (NICS ) which will not only do it for free but with far The essence of this argument is that Pennsylvania less complications to the gun buyer as well as the FFL law does not allow them (meaning to do it is dealer. The national instant check system is utilized ‘against’ the law) to demand this information and by 38 states without any demonstrable problems. specifically excludes long gun, rifle and shotgun , There will be much, much more coming out in the from the requirement to complete the record of sale next several weeks and I ask for your help in notifying form for these purchases. Pennsylvania firearms gun owners about this problem. I know gun owners dealers who comply with this policy dictate could, will wonder why this is a problem but let me give you technically, themselves, be guilty of violating an example of a situation that could be encountered by Pennsylvania law ( which is a misdemeanor 1 crime-see any owner of these firearms. If you are traveling section 6119 ) along with the Pennsylvania State police. home or to arrange and get stopped by a police officer PA Law ( Title 18 ) States in pertinent part (see for any reason and during the course of this stop he below): sees that you have firearms in your vehicle. It is more Page 2 than likely that he/she will decide to run each firearm The result of this was that by a vote of 194-1 this Bill against the Pennsylvania State police record of sale was sent back to the house game and Fish committee. database ( you know that illegal one that they There a package of 21 amendments awaits it, along continue to maintain at a cost to PA Taxpayers of with other needed revisions to current game code. over $500,000 a year ). When the report comes back It is important to point out that during the past to the officer in the field that your favorite AR-15 is week when this Bill was brought to the floor even the not registered in this Pennsylvania State Police Gun animal rights groups like Humane Society of the Registration System then in all likelihood what you United States and the notorious Peta were will face is arrest and seizure of your property until campaigning for this legislation's enactment. The fact "legal ownership" can be established, even though no that animal rights groups see the potential problems crime has been committed other than the prejudice this legislation could raise for sportsmen should make demonstrated by the particular law enforcement all outdoors enthusiasts concerned. officer question. I know, when talking to gun owners, We are hoping that the Pennsylvania game what you will encounter is that they will say this can't commission leadership will decide the bargain in good happen. Let me tell you I have in my files dozens of faith this time so that we can narrow the focus of this incidents (from ALL over the state) where gun owners legislation away from the possibility of terrible encountered this very kind of attitude and even worse consequences for the unintentional violator. Time treatment than mentioned in my simple explanation. will tell if we can be successful with this effort and it As Dirty Harry would say, “do you (we) feel will be up to sportsmen to open their eyes and ears up lucky”? and pay attention to this debate and this issue for otherwise the consequences could be devastating to House Bill 97 Moved Back to each of us. Committee Rendell Anti-Gun Prejudice In the continuing effort to put a stranglehold on the poaching of Pennsylvania game animals House Bill Puts Retired Law 97 was hurriedly voted out of committee and rushed to the floor of the House of Representatives two weeks Enforcement At Risk ago. In 2006 gun owners in Pennsylvania supported House While no Sportsman or Sportswoman supports Bill 1057 which would provide a mechanism by which poaching in any way shape or form, this legislation retired law enforcement officers could be afforded the option of carrying a firearm anywhere in the nation. This contained language that could have been ‘easily’ legislation was necessary because certain protocols and misinterpreted in the field. These misinterpretations regulations needed to be established to take advantage of would have carried significant penalties for the the federal legislation opportunity as embodied in House unintentional violator. Resolution 218. We have been working with this legislation, and This legislation - House Bill 1057 - passed and was the sponsor, throughout several sessions in an attempt signed into law leading everyone with the belief that the to refine this language so it is more clearly directed at direction and the position of legislators in the house and the perpetrators. While the concept of "civil asset Senate would be followed by the Pennsylvania State police forfeiture" has been removed from this version and the and the Governor's office. Apparently we were all very fines and punishments have been more refined there naïve! still exists a wide chasm of concern. Since the passage of House Bill 1057 nothing has been done to create the necessary training protocols and As this legislation was debated last week the documentation for retired law enforcement and the Allegheny County sportsmen's league the National organizations I have been told that are against us are not Rifle Association and the Pennsylvania sportsmen's only the Pennsylvania State police upper echelons but also Association and the Pennsylvania Federation of the Pennsylvania chiefs of police Association. sportsmen's clubs came together to express our An interesting but undeveloped thread in this is that concerns to members of the House of Representatives. none of the anti-gun groups have raised a peep about Page 3 this ! While the old song goes "Silence Is Golden" it is Representative Jesse White, Representative John Palone, also indicative of their prejudice against the concept of Representative Joe Petrarca, and Representative Deborah even retired law enforcement carrying firearms for Kula. self-defense . The importance of staying focused on this legislation So once again we have a situation where gun owners and being involved cannot have a better example than have stood up for law enforcement and try to provide them House Bill 1567 and the disingenuous approach by some with an option for their own self protection only to be who would make criminals of us all! thwarted by the bureaucratic process and an unfounded prejudice against the lawful carrying of firearms. Please consider calling your state legislator and asking Local Government--Vigilante them to look into this and report back to you (and us if you wouldn't mind) in writing as to what they have discovered Acts & Legislative Terrorism and what they are prepared to do to correct this injustice. Pennsylvania is a major expanding battleground of anti- gun efforts to drive a wedge between each of us and our freedoms. The Lost or Stolen concept being adopted by House Bill 1567 Stopped in the different cities around the Commonwealth (eight so far) is an attempt by these anti-gun forces comprising not Judiciary Committee only the Brady campaign but also the Bloomberg Mayors Once again we have another underhanded effort on the against Guns Coalition and Cease-Fire PA as well as part of the anti-gun legislators like Representative David numerous others to force the legislature to bend to their Levdansky and Representative Tom Caltagirone to add will.