Pennsylvania’s Harrisburg (WPVI) On Tuesday, State House Republicans entirely altered the bill to make it a constitutional amendment allowing anybody to carry concealed weapons, blocking a plan to ban people between the ages of 18 and 21 from owning assault-style rifles.
Republicans on the Judiciary Committee used their majority to thwart Democratic efforts to address the nation’s epidemic of gun violence for the second week in a row.
The law would have made it illegal for anybody under the age of 21 to buy, possess, or transfer the kinds of weapons that are frequently used in the mass shootings that have become all too common in the United States.
Although Republicans in the Legislature generally support so-called “constitutional carry,” Democratic Governor Tom Wolf vetoed a bill that would have authorised it in December.
The unrestricted right to bear guns is a fallacy that promotes the kind of violence seen in the Wild West, according to Rep. Joe Hohenstein, a Democrat from Philadelphia.
During the brief session in the Capitol, he added, “We can speak all we want about how weapons would make certain people safer, but they also make a whole lot of other people less safe.”
He said that weapons obtained legitimately are being used in violent crimes. “The mass massacres we witness are a result of lawful handgun purchasing,”
With just one Republican, Todd Stephens of the Philadelphia suburbs, voting against it, the vote was almost entirely along party lines.
According to Stephens, who represents a portion of Montgomery County, “They (GOP) are aware of my position. In terms of gun culture, there is a significant cultural gap between rural, suburban, and urban Pennsylvania. Simply said, attitudes toward firearms are significantly different there. Regarding those topics, their constituents don’t share my sentiments.”
“As we saw in Texas, the semi-automatic rifle appears to be the weapon of choice for many mass shooters. This young man bought the weapon legally because he was able to. I observe how the brain does not develop and shape until later in life because of my employment in the criminal justice profession. We need to take action because these kinds of weapons in the hands of the wrong people are seriously causing catastrophes throughout the nation “Stephens warned.
To remove gun violence bills from the Judiciary Committee, where Chairman Rob Kauffman, R-Franklin, has blocked their advancement, Democrats have turned to discharge resolutions, a legislative technique.
Last week, the committee decided to ask the speaker to refer four additional gun bills to another committee, effectively halting consideration of bills that would have prohibited assault weapons, banned the use of red flag legislation, and given local governments the authority to enact their own safety measures.
Rep. Tim Briggs of Montgomery County, the top Democrat on the Judiciary Committee, said on Tuesday that “this isn’t the way to legislate.” “Bills that are 70 to 80 per cent supported across the Commonwealth shouldn’t require discharge resolutions,” the speaker said.
A proposal to change the state constitution to allow the General Assembly authority to establish the guidelines for where civil cases can be filed was approved by all Republicans on the committee, except one.
When it comes to establishing their own guidelines for how cases should be handled, lawmakers “should not be managing the court by constitutional amendment,” according to Rep. Emily Kinkead (D-Allegheny).
Republicans on the committee rejected Briggs’ request for a public hearing on the proposal, and they said hardly anything about either bill.
Republican Representative Paul Schemel, who cast his party’s ballot by proxy on Tuesday, spoke with Action News.
According to Schemel, some of the states with the tightest gun laws are also some of the states where mass shooting incidents have occurred. But it also touches on fundamental rights because both state and federal constitutions list the right to own a gun as one of those rights.
Schemel declared he is not averse to additional hearings on developmental issues that may need to be taken into account for those between the ages of 18 and 21.
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“People are currently raising questions about firearms in the context of what is occurring in some mass shooting occurrences. Guns are just one of many factors at play; there are many others.
Increasing accessibility to mental health care is one of the things the Pennsylvania legislature has done. We also made a significant effort to help schools create safer learning environments.
Therefore, the three things that people often discuss when discussing mass shooting incidents are gun control supporters who want to limit firearms, mental health advocates who want to see improved access to mental health services, and those who support stronger safety regulations for schools.
On two of those issues, the legislature has been highly active, but there is much disagreement over the third, which relates to firearms “Schemel stated.
