House Committee to Consider Five Second Amendment-Related Bills Today, March 8

Today, Tuesday, March 8 at 1:00 p.m. in Room 100 of the House Office Building, the House Judiciary will be holding hearings on a number of bills impacting Maryland’s law-abiding gun owners. With the shift of the Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee to an anti-Second Amendment tilt, it is more important than ever that you contact the members of the House Judiciary Committee and respectfully urge them to oppose legislation that limits your freedoms, rights and heritage. Two of the bills on the docket this Tuesday are the House versions of two anti-gun bills that were introduced in the state Senate last month.

Support:

House Bill 343, sponsored by Delegate Rick Impallaria (R-7), seeks to repeal the requirement that the Secretary of the State Police find that a person has good and substantial reason to wear, carry or transport a handgun before issuing a handgun permit.

Oppose:

House Bill 330, sponsored by Delegate Ana Sol Gutierrez (D-18) and similar to Senate Bill 162, would make it illegal for anyone to manufacture, sell, offer to sell, purchase, receive or transfer any detachable magazine with a capacity of more than ten rounds, except for .22 caliber firearms. Any violation and conviction would result in a punishment not to exceed three years and a fine not to exceed $5,000 or both.

House Bill 730, sponsored by Delegate Luiz Simmons (D-17), would prohibit a person who has been treated (but not adjudicated) within five years for a mental disorder described in the American Psychiatric Association’s “Diagnostic and Statistical Manual-Mental Disorders” from possessing a regulated firearm or applying for a firearm dealers license. HB 730 treats people with such common disorders as, bulimia, anorexia or ADHD as criminals and denies them their rights without any adjudication by the legal system.

House Bill 1008, sponsored by Delegate Cheryl Glenn (D-45), similar to HB 330, would make it illegal for anyone to manufacture, sell, offer to sell, purchase, receive or transfer any detachable magazine with a capacity of more than ten rounds, except for .22 caliber firearms. Any violation and conviction would result in a punishment not to exceed three years and a fine not to exceed $5,000 or both.

House Bill 1043, sponsored by Delegate Tom Hucker (D-20) and similar to Senate Bill 161, seeks to allow the Secretary of State Police to reject an application for a State-regulated firearm dealer’s license if it is determined that someone whose license was previously suspended or revoked is involved. It would also unnecessarily duplicate recordkeeping and other requirements that have been in place at the federal level since 1968. Several provisions of HB 1043 mirror federal law and are already illegal. Where it does not mirror federal law, it imposes restrictions greater than those already in place.

Please contact the members of the House Judiciary Committee listed below and urge them to protect your Second Amendment rights, support HB 343 and oppose HB 330, HB 730, HB 1008 and HB 1043.

House Judiciary Committee Members:

Delegate Joseph F. Vallario, Jr. (D-27A), Chairman
[email protected]

Delegate Kathleen M. Dumais (D-15), Vice Chairman
[email protected]

Delegate Tiffany T. Alston (D-24)
[email protected]

Delegate Curt Anderson (D-43)
[email protected]

Delegate Sam Arora (D-19)
[email protected]

Delegate Jill P. Carter (D-41)
[email protected]

Delegate Luke H. Clippinger (D-46)
[email protected]

Delegate John W. E. Cluster, Jr. (D-8)
[email protected]

Delegate Frank M. Conaway, Jr. (D-40)
[email protected]

Delegate Don H. Dwyer, Jr. (R-31)
[email protected]

Delegate Michael J. Hough (R-3B)
[email protected]

Delegate Kevin Kelly (D-1B)
[email protected]

Delegate Susan C. Lee (D-16)
[email protected]

Delegate Susan K. McComas (R-35B)
[email protected]

Delegate Michael A. McDermott (R-38B)
[email protected]

Delegate Keiffer J. Mitchell, Jr. (D-44)
[email protected]

Delegate Neil C. Parrott (R-2B)
[email protected]

Delegate Luiz R. S. Simmons (D-17)
[email protected]

Delegate Michael D. Smigiel, Sr. (R-36)
[email protected]

Delegate Kriselda Valderrama (D-26)
[email protected]

Delegate Geraldine Valentino-Smith (D-23A)
[email protected]

Delegate Jeffrey D. Waldstreicher (D-18)
[email protected]