Legislative update: good bill, bad bill, make the calls!

We know you’re busy, so here’s the short version:

We’re about to turn around this session’s gun control around 180 degrees – but we need your help!

Good bill, bad bill

• Gun banners have announced a new rights-stripping omnibus bill (HF237).
• A bipartisan coalition of gun rights supporters have a alternate bill that punishes criminals, not you. They’ll be announcing it tomorrow (Wednesday, March 6).

What you can do

• Call and email your elected officials (see the end of this email for their contact info) and tell them to SAY NO to the Paymar bill (HF237) and SAY YES to the GOCRA-approved alternate bill.
• Call and email the House Public Safety committee (see below) and tell them to SAY NO to the Paymar bill (HF237) and SAY YES to the GOCRA-approved alternate bill.
• Call and email the Senate Republican leadership team (see below), and tell them that we need a companion bill in the Senate right away.

House Public Safety Committee

Let’s show Rep. Paymar’s that Minnesotans oppose his assault on our rights by defeating his bill in his own committee. Ask them to SAY NO to the Paymar bill (HF237) and SAY YES to the GOCRA-approved alternate bill.

Representative Michael Paymar (DFL) – Chairman
651-296-4199
E-mail: rep.michael.paymar
You can suggest that Rep. Paymar simply scrap his bill and sign on to the alternate bill.

Representative Paul Rosenthal (DFL) – Vice Chairman
651-296-7803
E-mail: rep.paul.rosenthal
Rep. Rosenthal authored HF294, which would gut the civil rights protections of Minnesota‘s Permit to Carry Law by allowing sheriffs to deny permits on the weakest of grounds. Tell him he should be working to punish criminals, not law-abiding citizens.

Representative Tony Cornish (R) – Republican Lead
651-296-4240
E-mail: rep.tony.cornish
Give Rep. Cornish a big THANK YOU for his strong support of your rights!

Representative Debra Hilstrom (DFL)
651-296-3709
E-mail: rep.debra.hilstrom
Thank Rep. Hilstrom for her strong rejection of registration schemes, as well as magazine and rifle bans, and thank her for supporting the alternate bill. (One newspaper has reported that she will be the alternate bill’s chief author!)

Representative Brian Johnson (R)
651-296-4346
E-mail: rep.brian.johnson
Rep. Johnson is new at the legislature this year, and will be under a lot of pressure to cave to gun control. Tell him to stand firm for our rights.

Representative Tim Kelly (R)
651-296-8635
E-mail: rep.tim.kelly
Thank Rep. Kelly for his consistent votes for gun rights.

Representative Andrea Kieffer (R)
651-296-1147
E-mail: rep.andrea.kieffer
Rep. Kieffer has been a strong voice in the fight for your rights, and deserves your thanks.

Representative John Lesch (DFL)
651-296-4224
E-mail: rep.john.lesch
Remind Rep. Lesch that “equal protection” means just that — city folks have the same civil rights as country folks.

Representative Kathy Lohmer (R)
651-296-4244
E-mail: rep.kathy.lohmer
Please thank Rep. Lohmer for her strong support of your rights!

Representative Joe Mullery (DFL)
651-296-4262
E-mail: rep.joe.mullery
Rep. Mullery has been an opponent of gun rights for a long time. Remind him that if we work together, we can improve mental health and conviction reporting, and make our existing laws work better.

Representative Jim Newberger (R)
651-296-2451
E-mail: rep.jim.newberger
Rep. Newberger is a strong supporter of your gun rights. Thank him for staying strong.

Representative Shannon Savick (DFL)
651-296-8216
E-mail: rep.shannon.savick
Rep. Savick is a rural DFLer who needs to be reminded that her constituents will not tolerate new gun control.

Representative Dan Schoen (DFL)
651-296-4342
E-mail: rep.dan.schoen
Remind Rep. Schoen that as a police officer, he knows who the real bad guys are: they’re not the law-abiding Minnesota gun owners, and they won’t follow new gun control laws any more than they follow the existing ones.

Representative Steve Simon (DFL)
651-296-9889
E-mail: rep.steve.simon
Rep. Simon is a smart, principled lawyer: he knows that the Supreme Court has affirmed the right to keep and bear arms as an individual right.He also knows that stripping due processdoesn’t make us more free or more safe. But you can remind him anyway!

Representative Erik Simonson (DFL)
651-296-4246
E-mail: rep.erik.simonson
Rep. Simonson is a new representative. Remind him that gun control is DFL Kryptonite: it has cost the House its DFL majority before, and it will again.

Representative Linda Slocum (DFL)
651-296-7158
E-mail: rep.linda.slocum
Representative Slocum is a co-author on several gun control bills this session. Tell her that focusing on the bad guys, not law-abiding gun owners, is the place to start.

Representative Mark Uglem (R)
651-296-5513
E-mail: rep.mark.uglem
Remind Rep. Uglem that the Second Amendment is not about hunting — it is a fundamental human, civil and Constitutional right, worthy of the strongest protection.

Representative John Ward (DFL)
651-296-4333
E-mail: rep.john.ward
Thank Rep. Ward for his past support of your gun rights and encourage him to continue to do so.

Senate Republican Leadership

Call and email , and tell them that we need a companion alternate bill in the Senate right away.

Minority Leader David W. Hann (48, R)147 State Office Building 651-296-1749 E-mail: Use Mail Form	Assistant Minority Leader Michelle R. Benson (31, R)115 State Office Building 651-296-3219 E-mail: sen.michelle.benson@senate.mn
Assistant Minority Leader Roger C. Chamberlain (38, R)129 State Office Building 651-296-1253 E-mail: sen.roger.chamberlain@senate.mn	Assistant Minority Leader Bill Ingebrigtsen (08, R)143 State Office Building 651-297-8063 E-mail: sen.bill.ingebrigtsen@senate.mn	Assistant Minority Leader Warren Limmer (34, R)153 State Office Building 651-296-2159 E-mail: sen.warren.limmer@senate.mn
Assistant Minority Leader Carla J. Nelson (26, R)117 State Office Building 651-296-4848 E-mail: sen.carla.nelson@senate.mn	Assistant Minority Leader Dave Thompson (58, R)131 State Office Building 651-296-5252 E-mail: sen.dave.thompson@senate.mn

Minnesota: House Anti-Gun Omnibus Bill Introduced

Minnesota Anti Gun Omnibus Bill Introduced…The grab for our Freedom and stomping on our Rights continues..

Criminalizes Private Sale of Firearms

The proposed language would criminalize the private transfers of firearms with limited exceptions, and also impose new fees (taxes). Minnesotans will be forced to undergo a criminal investigation if you wish to purchase a firearm from certain family members, friends and co-workers. And even though antique firearms are not regulated by the federal government and do not require a background check for transfers – this legislation would require a background check for them.

This system can only be enforced with gun registration. And, as we know from experiences in California, Australia and Canada, gun registration enables gun confiscation—only from honest citizens—since criminals are not subject to registration nor do they submit to criminal investigations. It is perfectly clear that these bills are intended to criminalize and outlaw the private transfer of firearms between family members, hunting buddies and co-workers.

According to an internal Department of Justice memorandum, “universal” background checks will not work without requiring gun registration. Read the memo and get the facts here.

Makes Transferee Permit Discretionary

Under current law, an applicant can only be denied a permit to purchase a pistol or certain semi-automatic rifles if they are disqualified by objective state and federal standards. This proposed language would allow the issuing officer to deny the applicant the ability to acquire a transferee permit if they – based only on “documented past contact with law enforcement” – deem the applicant to be a “danger to self or others.” This provision strips the applicant’s fundamental right to possess a firearm without any due process. Minnesota should be working to rid its residents of the burden of having to acquire a permit to exercise the right to possess a firearm in the home – not making it more difficult.

More Regulations and New Fee for Transferee Permit

This proposed language would set a fee of $25 to acquire a permit to possess a firearm – currently there is no fee. It would allow the issuing officer to require the applicant to apply in person, be fingerprinted and extend the processing of applications from five to seven days and allow for an extension to thirty days. These unnecessary changes only impact law-abiding applicants and will do nothing to prevent criminals from acquiring firearms.

Weakens the Permit to Carry to Act as Transferee Permit

Under current law, a valid permit to carry acts as an individual’s permit to purchase for up to five years. This proposed language would only allow an individual to use the permit to carry to purchase firearms for first year of the permit’s validity – effectively requiring you to get a transferee permit and a permit to carry.

Rather than working on gun control, legislators should work on real solutions to existing crime problems, empowering the law-abiding to protect themselves and loved ones, and focusing on mental health issues.

As such, the NRA has worked with state legislators to draft an alternative bill that includes the following REAL SOLUTIONS:

• Cracking down on straw purchases of firearms.
• Strengthening penalties on felons that possess firearms or ammunition.
• Improving reporting of individuals prohibited – under state law – from possessing firearms.
• Improving reporting of court-determined mental health firearm prohibitions and creating a rights-restoration process.

Please contact members of the House Public Safety Committee and urge them to OPPOSE HF 237 and ALL new gun control proposals and to SUPPORT NRA’s alternative bill.

House Public Safety Committee:

Representative Michael Paymar (DFL) – Chairman
651-296-4199
E-mail: rep.michael.paymar@house.mn

Representative Paul Rosenthal (DFL) – Vice Chairman
651-296-7803
E-mail: rep.paul.rosenthal@house.mn

Representative Tony Cornish (R) – Republican Lead
651-296-4240
E-mail: rep.tony.cornish@house.mn

Representative Debra Hilstrom (DFL)
651-296-3709
E-mail: rep.debra.hilstrom@house.mn

Representative Brian Johnson (R)
651-296-4346
E-mail: rep.brian.johnson@house.mn

Representative Tim Kelly (R)
651-296-8635
E-mail: rep.tim.kelly@house.mn

Representative Andrea Kieffer (R)
651-296-1147
E-mail: rep.andrea.kieffer@house.mn

Representative John Lesch (DFL)
651-296-4224
E-mail: rep.john.lesch@house.mn

Representative Kathy Lohmer (R)
651-296-4244
E-mail: rep.kathy.lohmer@house.mn

Representative Joe Mullery (DFL)
651-296-4262
E-mail: rep.joe.mullery@house.mn

Representative Jim Newberger (R)
651-296-2451
E-mail: rep.jim.newberger@house.mn

Representative Shannon Savick (DFL)
651-296-8216
E-mail: rep.shannon.savick@house.mn

Representative Dan Schoen (DFL)
651-296-4342
E-mail: rep.dan.schoen@house.mn

Representative Steve Simon (DFL)
651-296-9889
E-mail: rep.steve.simon@house.mn

Representative Erik Simonson (DFL)
651-296-4246
E-mail: rep.erik.simonson@house.mn

Representative Linda Slocum (DFL)
651-296-7158
E-mail: rep.linda.slocum@house.mn

Representative Mark Uglem (R)
651-296-5513
E-mail: rep.mark.uglem@house.mn

Representative John Ward (DFL)
651-296-4333
E-mail: rep.john.ward@house.mn

What Do Those Gun Grabbers in Minnesota’s House of Representatives Do…

For ‘real’ work?
Stolen here..

After my post on gun control legislation in Minnesota and its impact on jobs in that state, I started looking at the legislators who were sponsoring this legislation. Other than the fact that they were all Democrats, or as they are called in Minnesota – Democrat-Farmer-Labor, they had another similarity. They had made their careers, for the most part, in the public sector. Some, like Rep. Alice Hausman and Rep. Phyllis Kahn, even listed their occupation as “Legislator”. Look at the list below of the sponsors of HF 241 which is Minnesota’s version of an assault weapons (sic) ban.

Rep. Alice Hausman (DFL-St. Paul)		Legislator/fmr Teacher
Rep. Frank Horstein (DFL-Minneapolis)		Community Organizer
Rep. Erik Simonson (DFL-Duluth)		Asst Fire Chief
Rep. Jim Davnie (DFL-Minneapolis)		Financial Educator
Rep. Linda Slocum (DFL-Richfield)		Teacher
Rep. Rena Moran (DFL-St. Paul)		Parent Leader Coord.
Rep. Raymond Dehn (DFL-Minneapolis)		Sustainability Consultant
Rep. JoAnn Ward (DFL-Woodbury)		Retired Teacher
Rep. Phyllis Kahn (DFL-Minneapolis)		Legislator/University Research Assoc.

This made me wonder if the sponsors of gun control legislation in other states shared the similar characteristics of being primary from the public sector. With hearings on gun control legislation in Colorado and New Jersey scheduled for this week, I looked at those two states in particular.

Letter..Sent..

To:
The Governor of MN
The MN State Senate
The MN State House

To the Honorable Alice Hausman, Frank Hornstein, Erik Simonson, Jim Davnie, and Linda Slocum:
Please do not support HF241, the new Minnesota assault weapons ban that you co-authored.
This bill, although based on good intentions as a step on the road to reduce gun violence, is not based on evidence of the impact of semiautomatic military style assault weapons in Minnesota crime, and does not represent the will of the people.
Those that sign this petition want to see their lawmakers have an open, honest discussion on the true issues surrounding gun violence, including: a lack of better education on gun safety for all gun owners; inconsistent prosecution of those who falsify background check documents; gang-related activity; and other factors that make it easy for people to get access to guns they are ineligible to purchase.
Additionally, this bill submits private, law-abiding citizen to a new set of strict regulations on their legally owned semiautomatic firearms banned under this legislation. Minnesotans already follow the policies surrounding purchase of a so-named “military style assault weapon” and handguns by getting the proper permits, undergoing a background check, and showing a valid ID.
The new bill would require yearly re-registration, background checks, limit the magazine capacity of these firearms, deny the right of a person to gift or will a firearm to a loved one or close friend, and ultimately ends in the state obtaining these firearms upon submission or death of the owner, to be permanently destroyed.

With all respect, we, the people of Minnesota, do not support this legislation, and we urge you to remove your support as well.

Sincerely,
[Your name]