EGC_Content

GOAL Post

GOAL Post 2012-5

Legislative Update from Olympia 3 February 2012

FIRST POLICY COMMITTEE CUT-OFF PASSES
BILLS PASS OUT OF COMMITTEE, MANY WITH AMENDMENTS
POLITICAL GAMES BEGIN
GOAL POSITIONS SHIFT DUE TO AMENDMENTS

Friday, 3 February was the first policy committee cut-off day. Bills that had not passed out of their original policy committee are theoretically at least considered dead for the remainder of the session. Of the 17 bills GOAL is tracking, nine died at close of business Friday. In most cases, those bills that passed out of their policy committee go to the House or Senate Rules Committee, where they must be voted out to the chamber floor for passage by the full House or Senate, respectively. In some cases, where a bill has significant fiscal impact, it must pass out of one of the fiscal committees (usually Ways & Means) to determine how the bill will be funded. At this time, two bills of interest sit in House Ways & Means. Those bills must pass W&M no later than Tuesday, 7 February.

All bills must pass their original chamber (House Bills out of the House, Senate Bills out of the Senate) by 5 p.m. on Tuesday, February 14th.

HB 1508 (range protection) passed out of the House Judiciary Committee in an amended version, now titles SHB (Substitute House Bill) 1508. The substitute language essentially strips the bill of all power, only giving ranges an "affirmative defense" once they end up in court as a defendant in a nuisance lawsuit. This is the least effective form of range protection, and in coordination with NRA-ILA, we find it unacceptable. HB 2347 (spring-blade knives) also was stripped of its principal benefit to citizens by removing language allowing CPL holders to possess/carry spring-blade knives. Again, we find SHB 2347 to be unacceptable in its present form. House Bills 2471 (firearm purchase) and 2589 (unlawful firearm possession) passed out of House Judiciary in their original form and are still supported.

In the Senate, Senate Bills 5697 (gun security devices) and 6179 (switchblade knives) passed out of Senate Judiciary in amended forms. Rather than require the Attorney General to develop a state standard for gun safety devices, SHB 5697 merely adopts the standards adopted by the State of California (what a great precedent, adopting California standards for ANYTHING). SHB 6179 has no effect on current law as it applies to private citizens. SB 6123 (NRA license plate) passed out of Senate Transportation in an amended form as well. The amendment merely recognizes the current moratorium on specialty license plates and allows application for such a new plate only after July 1, 2013.

Now we see political reality as it is played in Olympia. Both the House and Senate are controlled by Democrats. While a fair number of mostly rural Democrat elected officials are pro-gun owners rights (see most of the sponsors of the pro-gun bills), leadership is still solidly anti-gun. In an election year, they may allow one or two pro-gun bills to make it through to the governor's desk, but as we have seen with the amendments to HBs 1508 and 2347, the bills were watered down to have limited or no positive impact for gun owners. This is Democrat leadership playing it both ways: toss the gun owners a bone, but make sure they really don't achieve any real benefit. Meanwhile, Democrats claim they passed pro-gun bills. We're not buying it. Either they amend the bills on the House floor to their original form, or we oppose the bills as they currently exist.

Accordingly, our position on SHBs 1508 and 2347 is "OPPOSE UNLESS ORIGINAL LANGUAGE IS RESTORED."

BILL STATUS:

The following are ALL of the gun-related bills filed during the current 2012 regular session.

Bill #	Subject	Sponsor	Status
HB 1006	Knife ban	Appleton (D-23)	Died
SHB 1508	Range protection	Takko (D-19)	H. Rules
HB 2067	Repeal of self defense restitution	Hunter (D-48)	H. W&M
HB 2098	Short barreled rifles	Blake (D-19)	Died
HB 2099	Short-barreled rifles and shotguns	Blake (D-19)	Died
HB 2137	Guns in vehicles	Blake (D-19)	Died
HB 2202	NRA license plate	Takko (D-19)	Died
SHB 2347	Spring-blade knives	Dammeier (R-25)	H. Rules
HB 2471	Firearm purchase	Goodman (D-45)	H. Rules
HB 2481	CPL reciprocity	Goodman (D-45)	Died
HB 2589	Unlawful firearm possession	Goodman (D-45)	H. W&M
SSB 5697	State agency gun security devices	Hargrove (D-24)	S. Rules
SSB 6123	NRA license plate	Hatfield (D-19)	S. Rules
SSB 6179	Anti-switchblade knives	Kastama (D-25)	S. Rules
SB 6209	Restricts lead ammunition bans	Schoesler (R-9)	Dead
SB 6272	Right to self-defense	Stevens (R-39)	Dead
SB 6274	10th Amendment/firearms	Stevens (R-39)	Dead

Key to abbreviations: HB = House Bill, SB = Senate Bill, Jud. = Judiciary, Trans = Transportation, W&M = Ways & Means, Ener. = Energy, Natural Resources and Marine Waters, Rules = Rules Committee

GOAL POSITION ON BILLS (see comments in narrative)

HB 1006	OPPOSE
SHB 1508	OPPOSE UNLESS ORIGINAL LANGUAGE RESTORED
HB 2067	OPPOSE
HB 2098	SUPPORT
HB 2099	SUPPORT
HB 2137	SUPPORT
HB 2202	SUPPORT IF AMENDED
SHB 2347	OPPOSE UNLESS ORIGINAL LANGUAGE RESTORED
HB 2471	SUPPORT
HB 2481	SUPPORT
HB 2589	SUPPORT
SB 5697	NEUTRAL
SB 6123	SUPPORT IF AMENDED
SB 6179	NEUTRAL
SB 6209	SUPPORT
SB 6272	SUPPORT
SB 6274	SUPPORT

HEARING(S) SCHEDULED:

None

LEGISLATIVE HOT LINE: You may reach your Representatives and Senator by calling the Legislative Hotline at 1-800-562-6000. Toll free!!! The hearing impaired may obtain TDD access at 1-800-635-9993. Also toll free!!!

1-800-562-6000 TDD 1-800-635-9993

OTHER DATA: Copies of pending legislation (bills), legislative schedules and other information are available on the legislature's web site at "www.leg.wa.gov". Bills are available in Acrobat (.pdf) format. You may download a free version of Adobe Acrobat Reader from Adobe's web site (http://www.adobe.com). You may also obtain hard copy bills, initiatives, etc, in the mail from the Legislative Bill Room FREE OF CHARGE by calling 1-360-786-7573. Copies of bills may also be ordered toll free by calling the Legislative Hotline at (800) 562-6000. You may also hear floor and committee hearing action live at http://www.tvw.org/ (you need "RealAudio" to do this, available free at the TVW web site).

By reading the House and Senate "bill reports" (hbr, sbr) for each bill, you can see how individual committee members voted. By reading the "roll call" for each bill, you can see how the entire House or Senate voted on any bill. The beauty of the web site is that ALL this information is available, on line, to any citizen.

GET THE WORD OUT: If you want to subscribe to the GOAL Post by e-mail, send a message to "jwaldron@halcyon.com". Please pass GOAL Post on to anyone you believe may have an interest in protecting our rights. Better yet, make a couple of copies of this message, post it on your gun club’s bulletin board, and leave copies with your local gun shop(s). PERMISSION IS HEREBY GRANTED TO DUPLICATE OR REDISTRIBUTE GOAL POST PROVIDED IT IS REPRODUCED IN ITS ENTIRETY WITHOUT TEXTUAL MODIFICATION AND CREDIT IS GIVEN TO GOAL. I can be reached at "jwaldron@halcyon.com" or by telephone at (425) 985-4867. Unfortunately, I am unable to mail hard copy GOAL Post to individuals. Limited numbers of hard copies MAY be available at the Second Amendment Foundation book table at WAC gun shows.

"The right of the individual citizen to bear arms in defense of himself, or the state, shall not be impaired, but nothing in this section shall be construed as authorizing individuals or corporations to organize, maintain or employ an armed body of men."
Article 1, Section 24
Constitution of the State of Washington

GOAL Alert 1-2012

January is my busiest month, with several reports due and a lot of traveling. As a result, I missed one!

SB 6209, by Senator Mark Schoesler (R-9-Ritzville), would limit the ability of the Department of Fish and Wildlife to ban the use of lead projectiles (shot and/or bullets). The bill requires the Department to show significant and substantiated impact on wildlife populations before such a ban could be enacted, and any ban must be narrowly tailored.

The NRA just posted the following alert:

Washington: Traditional Ammunition Bill Needs Your Support TODAY

Please contact your state Senator today!

In today’s society, the use of traditional ammunition (lead ammunition) is constantly under attack. Senate Bill 6209, sponsored by state Senator Mark Schoesler (R-9) and eight other state Senators, would limit the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) Commission’s ability to restrict the use of lead ammunition. This bill specifically states: “… the commission may only prohibit the use or possession of ammunition due to lead content where the commission finds that the prohibition is necessary and narrowly tailored to address significant and substantiated impacts to one or more wildlife populations.”

SB 6209 is a response to the overreaching prohibition that the WDFW Commission imposed on the use of lead shot for all hunting on the state’s pheasant release sites. To read our previous alerts on this issue, please click here.

This bill has been referred to the state Senate Energy, Natural Resources& Marine Waters Committee, but has not yet been scheduled for a hearing. Please contact your state Senator TODAY, and respectfully urge him or her to support SB 6209

SB 6209 was sent to the Senate Energy, Natural Resources and Marine Waters Committee. At this time, the bill is NOT scheduled for a hearing prior to Friday's policy committee cut-off. If no action is taken on the bill by Friday, it will be dead for the session.

Please e-mail or call your State Senator and ask him or her to support a public hearing on this bill as soon as possible. You can reach your senator at: http://www.leg.wa.gov/Senate/Senators/Pages/default.aspx

GOAL Post 2012-4

Legislative Update from Olympia 27 January 2012

FIRST POLICY COMMITTEE CUT-OFF 3 FEBRUARY
NO NEW FIREARMS BILLS FILED
PUBLIC HEARINGS HELD
BILLS SCHEDULED FOR EXECUTIVE SESSION
CHANGE IN GOAL POSITION ON BILLS

(Once again, distribution of GOAL Post is late. My excuse this time was the annual meeting of the Florida Sport Shooting Association, in Orlando, where I gave a presentation on legislative matters. GOAL Post 2012-5 SHOULD be distributed this coming Friday, 3 February.)

The House passed the proposed cut-off calendar shortly after convening, but the Senate only acted on Friday, 27 January. They amended the proposed calendar, so it must go back to the House for concurrence. What is a cut-off calendar? Bills under consideration must pass certain hurdles to continue in play for the session. Bills must clear their policy committee by a certain date, then pass out of the chamber (House or Senate) of origin before moving to the other chamber, where they go through the process again. A bill that fails to pass a cutoff date is supposed to be considered dead for the session. Supposed. However, exceptions can be made.

The first cut-off date for this session is Friday, 3 February. All bills must pass out of their policy committee by the end of business Friday or be considered dead for the session. Some bills must also pass out of a fiscal committee to continue in play. Most gun-related bills do not require fiscal action.

The proposed cut-off dates for the 2012 session are:

3 February	Policy committee cut-off (original chamber)
14 February	Chamber cut-off (House bills must pass out of the House, and Senate bills from the Senate)
24 February	Second chamber policy committee cut-off (House bills out of Senate policy committee, Senate bills out of House policy committee)
2 March	All bills must have passed the second chamber

No new gun-related bills were filed this past week.

Public testimony was taken on five bills this past week. House Bills 2471 (firearm purchase), 2347 (spring-blade knives) and 2589 (unlawful firearm possession) were heard in House Judiciary, while Senate Judiciary heard testimony on Senate Bill 6179 (spring-blade knives) and Senate Judiciary heard SB 6123 (NRA license plate).

After a bill receives a public hearing, the committee chair may schedule that bill for executive action (i.e. a vote out of committee). Several bills are scheduled for executive action (session) this week. On Monday, 30 January, House Judiciary will consider voting on HBs 1508, 2471, 2589 and 2347. This is the only meeting of House Judiciary scheduled before the 3 February policy committee cut-off.

The Senate Judiciary Committee has four meetings scheduled where executive action may be taken on bills, but at this time, none of the bills under consideration are listed. The same is true of Senate Transportation.

After discussions with various legislators and legislative staff members, GOAL has changed its position on two bills: Senate Bill 6179 from OPPOSE to SUPPORT. While SB 6179 does not go as far as House Bill 2347 in expanding access to spring-bladed knives, it's still an improvement in the status quo. Changes were made to HB 2589, and the version of the bill as filed acknowledges our concerns. GOAL now SUPPORTS HB 2589.

BILL STATUS:

The following are ALL of the gun-related bills filed during the current 2012 regular session.

Bill #	Subject	Sponsor	Status
HB 1006	Knife ban	Appleton (D-23)	H. Jud.
HB 1508	Range protection	Takko (D-19)	H. Jud.
HB 2067	Repeal of self defense restitution	Hunter (D-48)	H. W&M
HB 2098	Short barreled rifles	Blake (D-19)	H. Jud.
HB 2099	Short-barreled rifles and shotguns	Blake (D-19)	H. Jud.
HB 2137	Guns in vehicles	Blake (D-19)	H. Jud.
HB 2202	NRA license plate	Takko (D-19)	H. Trans.
HB 2347	Spring-blade knives	Dammeier (R-25)	H. Jud.
HB 2471	Firearm purchase	Goodman (D-45)	H. Jud.
HB 2481	CPL reciprocity	Goodman (D-45)	H. Jud.
HB 2589	Unlawful firearm possession	Goodman (D-45)	H. Jud.
SB 5697	State agency gun security devices	Hargrove (D-24)	S. Jud.
SB 6123	NRA license plate	Hatfield (D-19)	S. Trans.
SB 6179	Anti-switchblade knives	Kastama (D-25)	S. Jud.
SB 6272	Right to self-defense	Stevens (R-39)	S. Jud.

Key to abbreviations: HB = House Bill, SB = Senate Bill, Jud. = Judiciary, Trans = Transportation, W&M = Ways & Means

GOAL POSITION ON BILLS (see note in narrative)

HB 1006	OPPOSE
HB 1508	SUPPORT
HB 2067	OPPOSE
HB 2098	SUPPORT
HB 2099	SUPPORT
HB 2137	SUPPORT
HB 2202	SUPPORT IF AMENDED
HB 2347	SUPPORT
HB 2471	SUPPORT
HB 2481	SUPPORT
HB 2589	SUPPORT (change from OPPOSE)
SB 5697	NEUTRAL
SB 6123	SUPPORT IF AMENDED
SB 6179	SUPPORT (change from OPPOSE)
SB 6272	SUPPORT

HEARING(S) SCHEDULED:

None

1-800-562-6000 TDD 1-800-635-9993

GOAL Post 2012-3

Legislative Update from Olympia 20 January 2012

NEW BILL FILED
HB 1006 MAY BE RESURRECTED
PUBLIC HEARING ON SB 6123 RESCHEDULED)
PUBLIC HEARINGS SCHEDULED
PUBLIC TESTIMONY 101
MY LAST WORD ON HB 2202 AND SB 6123
LEGISLATOR CONTACT INFORMATION

(My apologies for the late distribution. I just got back from the Shooting, Hunting, Outdoor Trades (SHOT) in Vegas. Busy times. But I spoke with a dozens of Washingtonians there, refugees from the snow, many of whom were WAC or WSR&PA members.)

The legislative schedule for the past week was turned upside down by the snow event.

The legislature has yet to publish the cut-off calendar on its web site. The first cut-off will occur at the end of the first week in February. Theoretically, all bills that have not passed out of their original policy committee are supposed to be considered dead for the remainder of the session. But there ARE exceptions.

Rep. Roger Goodman (D-45) has filed House Bill 2589 which appears to be a technical bill addressing illegal possession of a firearm -- technical in the sense that it rewords existing law. Unless someone can give us a good reason why this change is necessary, GOAL will go on record opposing the bill.

While at the SHOT show, I was talking with a few individuals from the Knife Rights organization (kniferights.org). One of them told me he was told HB 1006, a bill banning most knives with blades over 3.5" in length, may be resurrected during this session. We'll keep an eye out for it.

The public hearing scheduled for SB 6123 (NRA license plate) on 18 January was a casualty of the snow. It has been rescheduled for a hearing by the Senate Transportation Committee on 26 January at 3:30 p.m. in Senate Hearing Room 1.

The House Judiciary Committee will hold a public hearing on House Bills 2347 (spring-blade knives), 2471 (firearm purchase) and 2589 (unlawful firearm possession) on 25 January at 8 a.m. in House Hearing Room "A." Interesting how they skipped over HBs 2098, 2099, 2137 and 2481, all good pro-gun bills. The committee chair has total control over which bills he chooses to hear.

The Senate Judiciary Committee will hold a public hearing on Senate Bill 6179 (spring-blade knives), also on 25 January, at 1:30 p.m. in Senate Hearing Room 1.

The public is allowed, even encouraged, to attend public hearings and to volunteer to speak in support of or opposition to bills under consideration. A sign-in sheet is available on a table just inside the hearing room. You can sign in in support or opposition to a specific bill, and indicate whether or not you wish to testify. Keep in mind time is limited, and the committee chair has total discretion as to who he chooses to call on.

Public testimony should be limited to three minutes. Try and focus your comments on one or two points -- that keeps it short and sweet. If someone else has already made that point, move on. DO NOT criticize the motives of individuals on the other side of the bill. Keep in mind that while you are likely testifying for yourself as a private citizen (you can't speak for an organization unless that organization's officers have authorized it), your comments will reflect on the gun-owning community as a whole. Public hearings are recorded and aired live as well as being available for recall. And the mainstream media like nothing more than to show the world how "radical" and "extremist" gun owners are. Keep the camouflage for your hunting trips; you don't have to wear a suit, but attire should be clean, pressed and presentable.

(I typically use the royal "we" in GOAL Post, reflecting the PAC's observations and positions on bills. The following is my personal opinion, although several GOAL trustees agree with me.)

My (personal) comments about the two NRA license plate bills drew sharp attention from several GOAL listers last week. This will be addressed this one last time unless the bills move forward. If that occurs, we will reconsider our position. For the record, I have been a life member of the NRA for nearly four decades. I have worked with the NRA on a number of issues, including as Chairman of WeCARE, the political action committee formed in 1997 to SUCCESSFULLY oppose anti-gun Initiative 676. I am an NRA-certified firearm safety instructor and a former NRA Election Volunteer Coordinator (EVC). The NRA is the 900 pound gorilla in the fight to protect our right to bear arms, sharing that goal (pun intended) with several other organizations, national,. state and local. (At last count, I am a current life or annual member of 18 gun-rights organizations. And, for the record, I am a former paid employee of the Bellevue-based Second Amendment Foundation and the former executive director of the Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms and currently serve as their legislative director. I am also a current or former elected official of five gun organizations, including the WSR&PA and WAC.)

While I have no problem with a dedicated NRA license plate in principle, I believe there is a better way to "show the flag" as it were. That is with a generic "Second Amendment" plate. First, it's harder for anti-gunners to vote against the Bill of Rights than it is to vote against one specific organization, especially the NRA, which many anti-gunners consider to be the devil (or worse). Second, I believe broadere support will be generated for a Bill of Rights/Second Amendment plate than for one recognizing a single organization. Third, I believe the revenues generated by a specialty plate could be better utilized keeping alive the Washington's unique self-defense reimbursement statute (the hunter education program is already supported by Pittman-Robertson funds and hunting license revenues). While at SHOT, I spoke with several NRA officials, one of whom told me he believed the revenues generated by NRA plates in the half-dozen or so states that have adopted such a plate go to the NRA Foundation.

The Second Amendment is what it's all about. It was there long before ANY of the other organizations came along, to include the NRA. ALL of them are committed to the preservation of the Second Amendment. And that's where I believe our focus should be. That's the last time I'll address this subject unless one of the bills moves forward.

Once again, here is the link to contact your elected legislators: http://apps.leg.wa.gov/DistrictFinder/Default.aspx. Just type in your address and links to your State Senator and two State Representatives will be provided.

BILL STATUS:

The following are ALL of the gun-related bills filed during the current 2012 regular session.

Bill #	Subject	Sponsor	Status
HB 1006	Knife ban	Appleton (D-23)	H. Jud.
HB 1508	Range protection	Takko (D-19)	H. Jud.
HB 2067	Repeal of self defense restitution	Hunter (D-48)	H. W&M
HB 2098	Short barreled rifles	Blake (D-19)	H. Jud.
HB 2099	Short-barreled rifles and shotguns	Blake (D-19)	H. Jud.
HB 2137	Guns in vehicles	Blake (D-19)	H. Jud.
HB 2202	NRA license plate	Takko (D-19)	H. Trans.
HB 2347	Spring-blade knives	Dammeier (R-25)	H. Jud.
HB 2471	Firearm purchase	Goodman (D-45)	H. Jud.
HB 2481	CPL reciprocity	Goodman (D-45)	H. Jud.
HB 2589	Unlawful firearm possession	Goodman (D-45)	H. Jud.
SB 5697	State agency gun security devices	Hargrove (D-24)	S. Jud.
SB 6123	NRA license plate	Hatfield (D-19)	S. Trans.
SB 6179	Anti-switchblade knives	Kastama (D-25)	S. Jud.
SB 6272	Right to self-defense	Stevens (R-39)	S. Jud.

Key to abbreviations: HB = House Bill, SB = Senate Bill, Jud. = Judiciary, Trans = Transportation, W&M = Ways & Means

GOAL POSITION ON BILLS (see note in narrative)

HB 1006	OPPOSE
HB 1508	SUPPORT
HB 2067	OPPOSE
HB 2098	SUPPORT
HB 2099	SUPPORT
HB 2137	SUPPORT
HB 2202	SUPPORT IF AMENDED
HB 2347	SUPPORT
HB 2471	SUPPORT
HB 2481	SUPPORT
HB 2589	OPPOSE
SB 5697	NEUTRAL
SB 6123	SUPPORT IF AMENDED
SB 6179	OPPOSE
SB 6272	SUPPORT

HEARING(S) SCHEDULED:

25 Jan 8:00 a.m.	HBs 2471, 2347, 2589 House Hearing Room “A”	House Judiciary Committee John L. O’Brien Building
25 Jan 1:30 p.m.	SB 6179 Senate Hearing Room 1	Senate Judiciary Committee John A. Cherberg Building
26 Jan 3:30 p.m.	SB 6123 Senate Hearing Room 1	Senate Transportation Committee John A. Cherberg Building

1-800-562-6000 TDD 1-800-635-9993

GOAL Post 2012-2

Legislative Update from Olympia 13 January 2012

LEGISLATIVE CUT-OFF CALENDAR NOT YET PUBLISHED
PUBLIC HEARINGS CONDUCTED ON HB 1508 AND SB 5697
SEVERAL NEW BILLS FILED
PUBLIC HEARING SCHEDULED FOR SB 6123
NOTE ON HB 2202/SB 6123 NRA LICENSE PLATE BILL
GOAL POSITION ON BILLS
LEGISLATOR CONTACT INFORMATION

The session cut-off calendar has yet to be published. Under the cut-off calendar, bills have to clear certain hurdles or they are considered dead for the remainder of the session (with exceptions, of course). The first policy committee cut-off should be around 4-5 February. Bills that have not passed out of their policy committee at that point are theoretically dead for the session.

Public hearings were conducted on HB 1508 (range protection) and SB 5697 (state-approved gun locking devices). The hearing on HB 1508 went very well, I thought. There was solid testimony in favor, but the associations of counties and cities definitely did not like it. Almost every bill heard by the House Judiciary Committee this week is up for executive session (a vote) next week. HB 1508 is NOT on the exec list at this time. Committee chairs have total discretion as to which bills are heard, and which bills receive a vote. It appears that the public hearing may be as far as Chairman Pedersen is willing to let this one go. That does not bode well for all the other pro-gun bills sitting in his committee.

SB 5697 applies to "official" firearms only, and has no impact on private firearms ownership, so I'm dropping attention to it at this time. If it is somehow twisted to apply to the rest of us, I'll bring it back.

I'm also dropping from the bill status list all of last session's bills, until or unless they're brought back up in this session.

Several new gun or arms-related bills were filed this week. HB 2347, by Rep. Bruce Dammeier (R-25) would allow individuals with CPLs or active duty military personnel to carry spring-blade (switchblades and some others) knives. The current exemption only applies to law enforcement officers. For those who have yet to discover the utility of a fast opening knife in a defensive scenario, these knives form a legitimate and sometimes critical defensive tool. HB 2471, by Rep. Roger Goodman (D-45) is the NICS alternative "fix-it" bill to waive background checks for CPL holders. HB 2481, also By Rep. Goodman (D-45) amends the current reciprocity statute to recognize CPLs from some states that issue carry licenses to individuals under the age of 21, but only of the licensee is 21 or over.

SB 6123, by Senator Brian Hatfield (D-19), is a mirror image to HB 2202, the NRA license plate bill. It is scheduled for a public hearing in Senate Transportation on 18 January. SB 6179, by Senator James Kastama (D-25) changes the definition of "spring-blade knife" to simple "switchblade;" it does NOT grant an exemption to CPL holders. SB 6272, by Senator Val Stevens (D-39), addresses the inherent right of self-protection and prohibits the state from tracking firearm or ammunition possession or intrusion by the state into the domicile or vehicle of an otherwise lawful citizen.

A public hearing has been scheduled for SB 6123, NRA license plate, by Sen. Brian Hatfield (D-19) by the Senate Transportation Committee on Wednesday, 18 January at 3:30 p.m.

HB 2202/SB 6123, NRA license plate. I first learned of this bill in early December on a visit to Olympia. Getting a license plate specifically recognizing the National Rifle Association is a commendable goal, And a nearly impossible one in the current legislative make-up. Sadly, like it or not, "NRA" is a four-letter word to Democrat leadership in Olympia. I suggested to one sponsor of the bill that it be changed to honor the Second Amendment in general. This defuses the "NRA" issue and broadens the appeal of the bill from NRA members to members of all gun rights groups, as well as to those who belong to NO group. And it makes it harder for the anti-NRA types to vote against a fundamental element of the Bill of Rights, recently affirmed by the Supreme Court of the United States. For that reason, GOAL's position on 2202/6123 is listed as "SUPPORT IF AMENDED." This will undoubtedly be greeted with dismay by some of our readers. But politics is the art of the possible. A Second Amendment license plate stands a far greater chance of passage than an NRA plate, pure and simple.

The "GOAL Position on Bills" section will only list those bills filed this session or under active consideration.

Once again, here is the link to contact your elected legislators: http://apps.leg.wa.gov/DistrictFinder/Default.aspx

Just type in your address and links to your State Senator and two State Representatives will be provided.

(ADMIN NOTE: I'll be at the Shooting, Hunting, Outdoor Trades (SHOT) Show in Las Vegas next week, returning home on Saturday, 21 January. GOAL Post will likely be distributed Saturday night. If any of y'all are going to be there, please stop and visit at the Second Amendment Foundation (SAF) booth #16753)

BILL STATUS:

The following are ALL of the gun-related bills filed during the current 2012 regular session.

Bill #	Subject	Sponsor	Status
HB 2067	Repeal of self defense restitution	Hunter (D-48)	H. W&M
HB 2098	Short barreled rifles	Blake (D-19)	H. Jud.
HB 2099	Short-barreled rifles and shotguns	Blake (D-19)	H. Jud.
HB 2137	Guns in vehicles	Blake (D-19)	H. Jud.
HB 2202	NRA license plate	Takko (D-19)	H. Trans.
HB 2347	Spring-blade knives	Dammeier (R-25)	H. Jud.
HB 2471	Firearm purchase	Goodman (D-45)	H. Jud.
HB 2481	CPL reciprocity	Goodman (D-45)	H. Jud.
SB 5697	State agency gun security devices	Hargrove (D-24)	S. Jud.
SB 6123	NRA license plate	Hatfield (D-19)	S. Trans.
SB 6179	Anti-switchblade knives	Kastama (D-25)	S. Jud.
SB 6272	Right to self-defense	Stevens (R-39)	S. Jud.

Key to abbreviations: HB = House Bill, SB = Senate Bill, Jud. = Judiciary, Trans = Transportation, W&M = Ways & Means

GOAL POSITION ON BILLS (see note in narrative)

HB 1508	SUPPORT
HB 2067	OPPOSE
HB 2098	SUPPORT
HB 2099	SUPPORT
HB 2137	SUPPORT
HB 2202	SUPPORT IF AMENDED
HB 2347	SUPPORT
HB 2471	SUPPORT
HB 2481	SUPPORT
SB 5697	NEUTRAL
SB 6123	SUPPORT IF AMENDED
SB 6179	OPPOSE
SB 6272	SUPPORT

HEARING(S) SCHEDULED:

18 Jan
3:30 p.m.

SB 6123
Senate Hearing Room "1"

Senate Transportation Committee
John A. Cherberg Building

1-800-562-6000 TDD 1-800-635-9993

GOAL Post 2012-1

Legislative Update from Olympia 6 January 2012

SPECIAL SESSION: NO ACTION ON GUNS
2012 REGULAR SESSION STARTS MONDAY, 9 JANUARY
LEGISLATION 101: HOW A BILL BECOMES A LAW
BILLS FILED IN 2011 REMAIN ALIVE
BATFE APPROVES NICS ALTERNATIVE STATUS, HOWEVER...
PARK INCIDENT MAY SPUR GUN BILL(S)
NEW BILL(S) FILED
PUBLIC HEARINGS SCHEDULED ON HB 1508, SB 5697
CONTACT INFORMATION FOR YOUR LEGISLATORS
LEGISLATIVE CUT-OFF CALENDAR TO BE PUBLISHED

The Special Session of the Legislature that convened on 28 November 2011 adjourned on 14 December 2011. No action was taken on any gun-related bills.

The 2012 Regular Session of the Legislature convenes on Monday, 9 January, for the Constitutionally-required 60 days (short session). At this time, it is scheduled to end no later than midnight, 8 March.

The legislative process is fairly simple. With some exceptions, it's a five step process:

1. A bill is assigned to a policy committee (usually Judiciary for gun bills) for consideration.
2. If it passes out of the policy committee, it goes to the chamber (House or Senate) floor for a vote.
3. If it passes the original chamber, it goes to the opposite chamber to a policy committee.
4. Again, if it passes the policy committee, it moves on to a floor vote.
5. If it passes out of both chambers, it goes to the governor for her signature, veto or partial veto.

Exceptions include bills that require fiscal action -- they go through additional fiscal committee hearings. And bills that are amended in the second chamber must be approved by the first chamber, or go to a conference committee to resolve differences.

The legislative explanation may be found at http://www.leg.wa.gov/legislature/Pages/Bill2Law.aspx

Because the legislature works on a two-year (biennium) schedule, bills filed in 2011 that did not pass out of committee are still alive through the 2012 session and may receive action. For that reason I have listed all 2011 bills in the "Bill Status" section of the GOAL Post.

Recognizing that SHB 1923, signed by Governor Gregoire last year, requires successful passage of a NICS check as part of the CPL clearance process, the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (BATFE) approved Washington as a NICS alternative state. This means that anyone who possesses a CPL issued after 22 July 2011 is exempt from a NICS check. Unfortunately, achieving full NICS Alternative status is a two-step process. Now that ATF has agreed to waive the federal requirement for a background check for "new" CPL holders, state law must be changed to exempt the state requirement for a similar background check. A draft bill to accomplish this is being circulated as I write this.

Sadly the New Year unfolded with the murder of a Park Ranger at Mt. Rainier by an apparently deranged young man. A photo of the man was published in the Seattle times, with the multi-tattooed individual holding a MAC-10 and what appears to be a Saiga shotgun (AK-47 look-alike) across his bare chest. Coming at the beginning of the legislative session, this may move to the top of the gun control agenda. Previous attempts by the gun control lobby to pass an "assault weapon" ban have all ended in failure, starting in the 1990s and most recently a couple of years ago.

At this time two new firearm-related bills have been filed: HB 2137 by Rep. Brian Blake (D-19) would allow individuals to secure legally-possessed firearms in a locked vehicle while parked in their employers parking lot even when company policy prohibits weapons possession. HB 2202 by Rep. Dean Takko (D-19) would create a specialized license plate with the NRA logo and words "National Rifle Association." Funds generated by the account would go to the state Fish & Wildlife Commission to be used for hunter education.

A public hearing on HB 1508, Shooting range protection, by Rep. Dean Takko (D-19) will be conducted by the House Judiciary Committee on Thursday, 12 January at 10 a.m. in House Hearing Room "A." Firearms safety should be at the top of everyone's agenda, gun owner and non-gun owner alike. A safe place for recreational shooting and a safe place to conduct firearms safety training serve society as a whole. HB 1508 would "grandfather" existing shooting ranges from new, restrictive ordinances. Range protections bills have been passed twice in the past 18 years, only to be vetoed by the governor.

A public hearing on SB 5697, state agency gun security devices by Senator Jim Hargrove (D-24) will be conducted by the Senate Judiciary Committee on Friday, 13Jjanuary at 1:30 p.m. in Senate Hearing Room 1. SB 5697 would require the Attorney General to establish minimum acceptable standards for firearm locking device(s) to be issued to anyone in the state who is armed by state or local government in the performance of his or her duties.

You can contact your elected legislators by several means. Links to legislative district information and legislators' telephone and e-mail addresses may be found at http://apps.leg.wa.gov/DistrictFinder/Default.aspx

Just type in your address and links to your State Senator and two State Representatives will be provided.

One of the first steps taken when the legislature convenes is adoption of a legislative cut-off calendar. These dates determine when a bill must pass out of its policy committee, or out of the originating chamber (House or Senate). The first policy committee cut-off will likely occur the first week in February. This calendar will be adopted on Monday or Tuesday, and it will be published in next week's GOAL Post.

BILL STATUS:

The following are ALL of the gun-related bills filed during the 2011 regular session. "Dead" bills may be revived in future sessions.

Bill #	Subject	Sponsor	Status
HB 1006	Knife blade length	Appleton (D-23)	H. Jud.
HB 1016	Suppressor use	Blake (D-19)	Gov. signed
HB 1066	Black powder storage and transport	Bailey (R-10)	H. Jud.
HB 1238	CPL age requirement lowered	Orcutt (R-18)	H. Jud.
HB 1400	Firearms on snowmobiles	Ross (R-14)	H. Jud.
HB 1455	Restoration of rights	McCune (R-2)	Gov. signed
HB 1508	Range protection	Takko (D-19)	H. Jud.
HB 1628	CPL background checks	Kirby (D-29)	H. Jud.
HB 1638	Harmonize state/federal law for CPLs	Goodman (D-45)	H. Jud.
HB 1729	State agency gun security devices	Hurst (D-31)	H. Jud.
SHB 1923	CPL qualification	Goodman (D-45)	Gov. signed
HB 1990	WA Firearms Freedom Act	Shea (R-4)	H. Jud.
HB 2067	Repeal of self defense restitution	Hunter (D-48)	H. W&M
HB 2098	Short barreled rifles	Blake (D-19)	H. Jud.
HB 2099	Short-barreled rifles and shotguns	Blake (D-19)	H. Jud.
HB 2137	Guns in vehicles	Blake (D-19)	H. Jud.
HB 2202	NRA license plate	Takko (D-19)	Unassigned
SB 5112	Suppressor use	Hatfield (D-19)	S. Jud.
SB 5313	Juvenile weapon possession	Kline (D-37)	S. Jud.
SB 5418	No duty to retreat	Becker (R-2)	S. Jud.
SB 5592	College weapon prohibition	Shin (D-21)	S. Jud.
SSB 5634	CPL background checks	Hargrove (D-24)	S. Jud.
SB 5697	State agency gun security devices	Hargrove (D-24)	S. Jud.

Key to abbreviations: HB = House Bill, SHB = Substitute House Bill, SB = Senate Bill, SSB = Substitute Senate Bill, Jud. = Judiciary, W&M = Ways & Means

GOAL POSITION ON BILLS

HB 1508	SUPPORT
SB 5697	NEUTRAL

Remainder to be determined

HEARING(S) SCHEDULED:

12 Jan 10:00 a.m.	HB 1508 House Hearing Room "A"	House Judiciary Committee John L. O'Brien Bldg (JLO)
13 Jan 1:30 p.m.	SB 5697 Senate Hearing Room 1	Senate Judiciary Committee John A. Cherberg Building

1-800-562-6000 TDD 1-800-635-9993

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Upcoming WAC gun show(s):

Monroe	14-15 January
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GOAL Post 2011-SUMMARY

Legislative Update from Olympia 13 May 2011

SECOND SPECIAL SESSION?
THREE BILLS SIGNED BY GOVERNOR
ALL THREE TAKE EFFECT 22 JULY
NICS-ALTERNATIVE STATUS AWAITS BATFE DETERMINATION
DEAD ISN'T NECESSARILY DEAD (2012)
GOAL ALERTS WILL BE PUBLISHED AS NECESSARY

The 2011 regular legislative session ended on Friday, 22 April. Governor Gregoire called a 30-day special session, to begin on 26 April, to give legislators additional time to come up with a biennial (two-year) state budget. We're more than half way through the special session -- no budget yet! The Tacoma News Tribune is speculating that a second special session may be necessary.

Governor Gregoire has signed into law all three gun-related bills that passed the legislature during the regular session. HB 1016 allows use of firearm suppressors (silencers) if they are lawfully possessed under federal law. HB 1455 mandates petitions for restoration of firearm rights due to a disqualifying conviction or commitment be filed either in the county of residence of the petitioner or in the county where the conviction/commitment occurred. SHB 1923 requires denial of a concealed pistol license in the applicant cannot pass a federal NICS (National Instant Criminal Background Check System) check.

All three bills take effect on 22 July 2011.

The language used in SHB 1923 was supposed to give us a "NICS alternative" CPL, meaning a person with a valid, current CPL issued after 7/22/2100 would not be required to undergo a NICS check when purchasing a firearm from a licensed dealer. BATFE has yet to make the formal determination that the new law meets the federal standard, although we were told informally during session that it did.

Keep in mind that, just as the legislature stands for a two-year term (2011-2012 biennium), all bills filed during any session remain available for action by the legislature. Bills that "died" during the session because they failed to pass one of the cut-off dates may be "resurrected" in future sessions. In addition, new bills may be introduced. All of the gun-related bills filed during the 2011 regular session are listed below, with their current status.

I will continue to publish GOAL Alerts if something pops up.

BILL STATUS:

The following are ALL of the gun-related bills filed during the 2011 regular session. "Dead" bills may be revived in future sessions.

Bill #	Subject	Sponsor	Status
HB 1006	Knife blade length	Appleton (D-23)	Dead
HB 1016	Suppressor use	Blake (D-19)	Gov. signed
HB 1066	Black powder storage and transport	Bailey (R-10)	Dead
HB 1238	CPL age requirement lowered	Orcutt (R-18)	Dead
HB 1400	Firearms on snowmobiles	Ross (R-14)	Dead
HB 1455	Restoration of rights	McCune (R-2)	Gov. signed
HB 1508	Range protection	Takko (D-19)	Dead
HB 1628	CPL background checks	Kirby (D-29)	Dead
HB 1638	Harmonize state/federal law for CPLs	Goodman (D-45)	Dead
HB 1729	State agency gun security devices	Hurst (D-31)	Dead
SHB 1923	CPL qualification	Goodman (D-45)	Gov. signed
HB 1990	WA Firearms Freedom Act	Shea (R-4)	Dead
HB 2067	Repeal of self defense restitution	Hunter (D-48)	Dead
SB 5112	Suppressor use	Hatfield (D-19)	Dead
SB 5313	Juvenile weapon possession	Kline (D-37)	Dead
SB 5418	No duty to retreat	Becker (R-2)	Dead
SB 5592	College weapon prohibition	Shin (D-21)	Dead
SSB 5634	CPL background checks	Hargrove (D-24)	Dead
SB 5697	State agency gun security devices	Hargrove (D-24)	Dead

Key to abbreviations: HB = House Bill, SHB = Substitute House Bill, SB = Senate Bill, SSB = Substitute Senate Bill

GOAL POSITION ON BILLS

Not applicable

HEARING(S) SCHEDULED:

No public hearings remain for gun-related bills.

1-800-562-6000 TDD 1-800-635-9993

Addendum

GOAL Post 2011-Addendum

Legislative Update from Olympia 13 May 2011

DATE CORRECTION
I MISSED ONE PRO-GUN BILL
GOAL ALERTS

Regarding the NICS-alternative status for Washington CPLs, the correct date should read "CPL issued after 7/22/2011." I suspect not to many of us would be around to have a CPL issued after 7/22/2100! Thanks to a sharp GOAL Post reader for catching that one.

A week before the regular session ended, Rep. Brian Blake (D-19), one of the strongest proponent of our right to keep and bear arms in Olympia, introduced HB 2099. The bill would open the door once again to lawful possession of short-barreled rifles and short-barreled shotguns. The bill was filed too late for consideration in this year's session, but will be at the top of the stack for 2012. Another sharp-eyed reader caught that one!

Up until 1994, there was no restriction on the possession of short-barreled rifles and shotguns in Washington, provided they were possessed in compliance with federal law (just as suppressors are lawfully possessed). Back when Rep. Marlin Appelwick (D-Seattle), and Senators Phil Talmadge (D-Seattle) and Adam Smith (D-Federal Way) were drafting the so-called "Youth Violence Act" (E2SHB 2319), they added a provision banning the possession of these heavily (federally) regulated firearms. There was no good reason for than ban in 199 [sic], nor is there one today. Hopefully the bill will move forward next regular session.

As I noted at the end of the narrative in the Summary message just released, I will continue to publish GOAL Alerts as necessary between legislative sessions. I will also be updating/maintaining the GOAL e-mail list. If you have corrections/changed e-mail addresses to add, or want to pass this on to friends, please do so. It's a year-round effort.

GOAL Post 2011-16

Legislative Update from Olympia 22 April 2011

SESSION ENDED TODAY -- SORT OF
GOVERNOR CALLS SPECIAL SESSION TO BEGIN TUESDAY
HB 1455 AND SHB 1923 AT GOVERNOR'S OFFICE
HB 1016 TO TAKE EFFECT 21 JULY
GOAL POST SUMMARY TO BE PUBLISHED AFTER SPECIAL SESSION
NRA CONVENTION NEXT WEEKEND IN PITTSBURGH

Under the state constitution, in odd-numbered years the legislative session can last up to 105 days. In even-numbered years, the limit is 60 days. The principal purpose of the long session is development of the two year (biennium) state budget. The legislature adjourned today, two days early, after failing to reach agreement on the 2011-2012 budget. Legislators will go home for a brief Easter holyday weekend.

Governor Gregoire has formally called for a special session of the legislature, to begin Tuesday, 26 April. A special session may last up to 30 days, although typically they end much earlier. While a special session is called for a specific reason (in this case, adoption of a biennial budget), once in session the legislature may choose to act on any bills or legislation they desire. (In that sense, it is like a Constitutional Convention -- once the door is opened, you lose control of who or what enters.) I would not expect the gun issue to come up, but all bills previously filed may receive new attention, and new bills may be filed. As always, eternal vigilance remains the price of liberty.

Two gun-related bills are sitting on the governor's desk, awaiting her signature or veto. HB 1455, by Rep. Jim McCune (R-2), mandates petitions (applications) for restoration of firearm rights (e.g. due to a disqualifying conviction, commitment, etc) MUST be filed either in the county where the petitioner resides or the county where the conviction (or other disqualifying status) occurred. HB 1923, by Rep. Roger Goodman (D-45), adds federal disqualifiers (prohibited persons) as a condition for denying a CPL. For those of you who have CPLs, you may recall the warning notice on the full-sized form that notes state and federal prohibitions are different. Assuming the governor signs the bill, that will no longer be the case, as regards CPL issue.

Unless a bill contains an "emergency clause," new laws signed by the governor do not take effect until 90 days after the end of the legislative session. HB 1016, the only gun bill thus far signed by Governor Gregoire, will take effect on 21 July. At that point those of you who lawfully possess (under federal law) suppressors may legally fire rounds through them.

I will publish a final summary GOAL Post when the special session ends and the governor has taken action on bills remaining to be signed. GOAL Posts will be published during the special session only if gun-related bills are acted on.

Next weekend, 29 April-1 May, is the time of the NRA convention and annual meeting. This years' event takes place in Pittsburgh, PA. If any of you are headed back that way, I'll be working at the Second Amendment Foundation booth, #325, in the exhibition hall. Stop by and say hello. I typically see at least a dozen Washingtonians there.

BILL STATUS:

The following bills are still under consideration for the 2011-12 biennium:

Bill #	Subject	Sponsor	Status
HB 1016	Suppressor use	Blake (D-19)	Signed by Gov.
HB 1455	Restoration of rights	McCune (R-2)	To Gov.
SHB 1923	CPL qualification	Goodman (D-45)	To Gov.
HB 2067	Repeal of self defense restitution	Hunter (D-48)	Dead on arrival

Key to abbreviations: HB = House Bill, SHB = Substitute House Bill, W&M = Ways & Means

GOAL POSITION ON BILLS

HB 1016	SUPPORT
HB 1455	SUPPORT
SHB 1923	SUPPORT
HB 2067	STRONGLY OPPOSE

HEARING(S) SCHEDULED:

No public hearings remain for gun-related bills.

1-800-562-6000 TDD 1-800-635-9993

GOAL Post 2011-15

Legislative Update from Olympia 15 April 2011

HB 1016 SIGNED BY GOVERNOR
HB 1455 PASSES SENATE, HOUSE CONCURS, NEXT STOP GOV
SHB 1923 PASSES SENATE, NEXT STOP: GOVERNOR GREGOIRE
HB 2067 LIMITS YOUR RIGHT TO SELF DEFENSE... WELL, IT WOULD HAVE
NINE DAYS LEFT IN THE REGULAR SESSION, SPECIAL SESSION LIKELY

Governor Gregoire has signed into law HB 1016, by Rep. Brian Blake (D-19) which legalizes the use of lawfully-owned suppressors (silencers) in Washington. It takes effect 90 days after the end of the current session. With some exceptions, to purchase a suppressor under federal law, your Chief Law Enforcement Officer (county sheriff or city police chief) must approve your purchase application (ATF Form 4). Some sheriffs have refused to sign because while there is no law prohibiting OWNERSHIP of a suppressor in Washington, it has been illegal to USE a suppressor. That prohibition goes away in late July (90 days AFTER the end of the regular session).

As an aside, there was no exception in current law for law enforcement agencies to use suppressors (many of which currently possess suppressed weapons, nominally to take down dogs guarding meth labs and other illegal activities). So under HB 1016, now both cops and citizens can possess AND USE suppressed firearms. It will be interesting to see if any sheriffs still have reservations about citizens owning suppressors... (who they like to refer to as "civilians," ignoring the fact that cops are civilians, too).

HB 1455, by Rep. Jim McCune (R-2), which mandates which courts must accept petitions for restoration of firearm rights, has passed the Senate. Because it was amended in the Senate Judiciary Committee, it was sent back to the House for a concurrence vote. On Thursday, 14 April, the House concurred in the Senate amendment, 49-0. The bill now goes to Governor Gregoire.

SHB 1923, by Rep. Roger Goodman (D-45), harmonizing federal and state firearm disqualifiers when CPLs are issued, passed out of the Senate on a 38-9 vote, with two excused. It, too, is headed for the Governor.

HB 2067, by Rep. Ross Hunter (D-48) would repeal RCW 9A.16.110. That section of law is unique in the United States: if a person is charged in Washington with homicide or assault, pleads not guilty by reason of self defense, and the jury (or judge, in the case of a trial by judge) agrees that it was a legitimate case of self-defense with no criminal culpability by the defendant, the defendant is then awarded "reasonable costs" (e.g. cost of defense, lost wages, etc). In his zeal to save taxpayer dollars (and limit the effect of a self-defense plea), anti-gun Rep. Hunter has filed a bill to repeal the law. The true value of RCW 9A.16.110 is that it discourages head-hunting prosecutors from initiating malicious prosecutions. For example, in my 15 years in King County I don't recall a single case of County Prosecutor Norm Maleng making a bad call on a shooting and going after someone who did not deserve prosecution.

We're talking about an average of eight cases per year, statewide, with a total expenditure of about $500,000 a year.. That "saving" won't put much of a dent in the state's current budget shortfall ($5 billion).

A public hearing on HB 2067 was scheduled for Wednesday, 13 April, but was canceled after an overwhelming number of e-mails from irate gun owners flooded the legislature. Reportedly Speaker Frank Chopp (D-43) said, "I don't want to see this again, the issue is dead." (Keep in mind nothing is truly dead until the fat lady sings and the legislators pack their bags and leave Olympia.)

The 2011 regular legislative session will end no later than midnight, Sunday, 24 April -- Easter Sunday. I would have predicted an early adjournment due to the holy day, but it appears the biennial budget will not be finished on time, so a special session is likely. Senate Majority Leader suggested a special session immediately following the regular session, but Governor Gregoire seems inclined to let legislators go home while the fiscal committees dig deeper to find the $5 billion needed to close the gap.

Per the state constitution, the regular session MUST end by midnight on the 105th day, 24 April. Although a special session may be called for any reason (such as the current budget difficulty), one a special session convenes lawmakers may consider any subject(s) they like. Once again, eternal vigilance is the price of freedom.

BILL STATUS:

The following bills are still under consideration for the 2011-12 biennium:

Bill #	Subject	Sponsor	Status
HB 1016	Suppressor use	Blake (D-19)	Signed by Gov.
HB 1455	Restoration of rights	McCune (R-2)	To Gov.
SHB 1923	CPL qualification	Goodman (D-45)	To Gov.
HB 2067	Repeal of self defense restitution	Hunter (D-48)	H. W&M

Key to abbreviations: HB = House Bill, SHB = Substitute House Bill, W&M = Ways & Means

GOAL POSITION ON BILLS

HB 1016	SUPPORT
HB 1455	SUPPORT
SHB 1923	SUPPORT
HB 2067	STRONGLY OPPOSE

HEARING(S) SCHEDULED:

No public hearings remain for gun-related bills.

1-800-562-6000 TDD 1-800-635-9993

GOAL Post 2011-14

Legislative Update from Olympia 8 April 2011

HB 1016 DELIVERED TO GOVERNOR; MONDAY ACTION
STILL AWAITING VOTES ON TWO BILLS IN SENATE
SECOND CHAMBER CUT-OFF TUESDAY, 12 APRIL
SESSION SCHEDULED TO END ON EASTER SUNDAY

HB 1016, by Rep. Brian Blake (D-19), was officially delivered to Governor Gregoire on Wednesday, 6 April. She has five days to act on the bill. HB 1016 is currently on her schedule for executive action at 2 p.m. on Monday, 11 April. Gubernatorial action on bills and scheduled bill signing information can be found at http://www.governor.wa.gov/billaction/2011/default.asp

Two bills are still hanging in Senate Rules awaiting a pull to the floor for a vote of the full Senate. HB 1455, by Rep. Jim McCune (R-2) (restoration of rights) and SHB 1923, by Rep. Roger Goodman (D-45) (CPL qualification) must pass out of the Senate by 5 p.m. on Tuesday, 12 April or die for this session. Both the House and Senate are working this weekend to overcome the backlog of bills,

As noted above, Tuesday, 12 April is the cut-off for bills to pass their second chamber (House bills in the Senate and Senate bills in the House). Bills that fail to make it over this hurdle will be considered dead for the 2011 regular session.

As required by the state constitution, the 2011 regular session of the legislature must end by midnight on Sunday, 24 April, the 105th legislative day. 24 April is Easter Sunday. I suspect the session will end a day or two earlier, given the religious and family-related significance of Easter Sunday.

BILL STATUS:

The following bills are still under consideration for the 2011-12 biennium:

Bill # Subject Sponsor Status

HB 1016 Suppressor use Blake (D-19) To Gov.

HB 1455 Restoration of rights McCune (R-2) S. Rules

SHB 1923 CPL qualification Goodman (D-45) S. Rules

Key to abbreviations: HB = House Bill, SHB = Substitute House Bill

GOAL POSITION ON BILLS

HB 1016 SUPPORT

HB 1455 SUPPORT

SHB 1923 SUPPORT

HEARING(S) SCHEDULED:

No public hearings remain for gun-related bills.

LEGISLATIVE HOT LINE: You may reach your Representatives and Senator by calling the Legislative Hotline at 1-800-562-6000. Toll free!!! The hearing impaired may obtain TDD access at 1-800-635-9993. Also toll free!!!

1-800-562-6000 TDD 1-800-635-9993

OTHER DATA: Copies of pending legislation (bills), legislative schedules and other information are available on the legislature's web site at "www.leg.wa.gov". Bills are available in Acrobat (.pdf) format. You may download a free version of Adobe Acrobat Reader from Adobe's web site (http://www.adobe.com). You may also obtain hard copy bills, initiatives, etc, in the mail from the Legislative Bill Room FREE OF CHARGE by calling 1-360-786-7573. Copies of bills may also be ordered toll free by calling the Legislative Hotline at (800) 562-6000. You may also hear floor and committee hearing action live at http://www.tvw.org/ (you need "RealAudio" to do this, available free at the TVW web site).

By reading the House and Senate "bill reports" (hbr, sbr) for each bill, you can see how individual committee members voted. By reading the "roll call" for each bill, you can see how the entire House or Senate voted on any bill. The beauty of the web site is that ALL this information is available, on line, to any citizen.

GET THE WORD OUT: If you want to subscribe to the GOAL Post by e-mail, send a message to "jwaldron@halcyon.com". Please pass GOAL Post on to anyone you believe may have an interest in protecting our rights. Better yet, make a couple of copies of this message, post it on your gun club’s bulletin board, and leave copies with your local gun shop(s). PERMISSION IS HEREBY GRANTED TO DUPLICATE OR REDISTRIBUTE GOAL POST PROVIDED IT IS REPRODUCED IN ITS ENTIRETY WITHOUT TEXTUAL MODIFICATION AND CREDIT IS GIVEN TO GOAL. I can be reached at "jwaldron@halcyon.com" or by telephone at (425) 985-4867. Unfortunately, I am unable to mail hard copy GOAL Post to individuals. Limited numbers of hard copies MAY be available at the Second Amendment Foundation book table at WAC gun shows.

"The right of the individual citizen to bear arms in defense of himself, or the state, shall not be impaired, but nothing in this section shall be construed as authorizing individuals or corporations to organize, maintain or employ an armed body of men."
Article 1, Section 24
Constitution of the State of Washington

Copyright 2011 Gun Owners Action League of WA
GOAL Post 2011-13

Legislative Update from Olympia 1 April 2011

HB 1016 PASSES SENATE, NEXT STOP: GOVERNOR GREGOIRE
TWO BILLS REMAINING FOR SENATE ACTION
SECOND CHAMBER CUT-OFF 12 APRIL
WSP OUT WITH A NEW REQUEST LETTER

HB 1016, by Rep. Brian Blake (D-19), which legalizes the use of lawfully-owned suppressors in Washington, passed out of the Senate on Tuesday, 29 March with a 47-0 vote. As soon as it is signed by the Speaker of the House and the President of the Senate, it goes to Governor Gregoire, who has five business days to act on the bill. The governor has three options: she can sign the bill into law; she can allow the bill to become law without her signature; or she can veto the bill. At this time, given the near unanimous passage by both chambers and the fact that the bill is viewed by many as a "law enforcement bill" (under current law, law enforcement agencies are also prohibited under penalty of law from using suppressors), I would not anticipate a problem with the governor signing the bill.

Two firearm-related bills remain to be voted on by the Senate: HB 1455(restoration of rights) and SHB 1923 (CPL qualification). They have until 12 April to get a vote on the Senate floor. Much of next week's schedule is devoted to Senate and House floor time.

Tuesday, 12 April is the last days for bills to pass out of the second chamber (House bills out of the Senate and vice versa). As noted above, we have two gun bills remaining to be voted on in the Senate. There appears to be more than adequate time for this to happen. Just over three weeks remain in the 2011 regular legislative session. Per the state constitution, the session must end by midnight on Sunday, 24 April.

The Washington State Patrol has promulgated another letter to firearm dealers asking for information about individuals purchasing AR-15 lower receivers. This one, dated 28 March, acknowledges up front that dealers have no legal obligation to comply. The Patrol is asking them to cooperate "in the interest of public safety," and claims the data received will not be retained after completion of the investigation. The obvious question is, why not just ask ATF to investigate, and give them the name or names of any suspect? ATF has the authority to walk into any gun shop in the US and ask to see dealers' records. Again, I believe this is less malicious or nefarious intent and more ham-handedness on the part of the Patrol.

BILL STATUS:

The following bills are still under consideration for the 2011-12 biennium:

Bill # Subject Sponsor Status

HB 1016 Suppressor use Blake (D-19) S. Rules

HB 1455 Restoration of rights McCune (R-2) S. Rules

SHB 1923 CPL qualification Goodman (D-45) S. Rules

Key to abbreviations: S. = Senate, H. = House

GOAL POSITION ON BILLS

HB 1016 SUPPORT

HB 1455 SUPPORT

SHB 1923 SUPPORT

HEARING(S) SCHEDULED:

No public hearings remain for gun-related bills.

LEGISLATIVE HOT LINE: You may reach your Representatives and Senator by calling the Legislative Hotline at 1-800-562-6000. Toll free!!! The hearing impaired may obtain TDD access at 1-800-635-9993. Also toll free!!!

1-800-562-6000 TDD 1-800-635-9993

OTHER DATA: Copies of pending legislation (bills), legislative schedules and other information are available on the legislature's web site at "www.leg.wa.gov". Bills are available in Acrobat (.pdf) format. You may download a free version of Adobe Acrobat Reader from Adobe's web site (http://www.adobe.com). You may also obtain hard copy bills, initiatives, etc, in the mail from the Legislative Bill Room FREE OF CHARGE by calling 1-360-786-7573. Copies of bills may also be ordered toll free by calling the Legislative Hotline at (800) 562-6000. You may also hear floor and committee hearing action live at http://www.tvw.org/ (you need "RealAudio" to do this, available free at the TVW web site).

By reading the House and Senate "bill reports" (hbr, sbr) for each bill, you can see how individual committee members voted. By reading the "roll call" for each bill, you can see how the entire House or Senate voted on any bill. The beauty of the web site is that ALL this information is available, on line, to any citizen.

GET THE WORD OUT: If you want to subscribe to the GOAL Post by e-mail, send a message to "jwaldron@halcyon.com". Please pass GOAL Post on to anyone you believe may have an interest in protecting our rights. Better yet, make a couple of copies of this message, post it on your gun club’s bulletin board, and leave copies with your local gun shop(s). PERMISSION IS HEREBY GRANTED TO DUPLICATE OR REDISTRIBUTE GOAL POST PROVIDED IT IS REPRODUCED IN ITS ENTIRETY WITHOUT TEXTUAL MODIFICATION AND CREDIT IS GIVEN TO GOAL. I can be reached at "jwaldron@halcyon.com" or by telephone at (425) 985-4867. Unfortunately, I am unable to mail hard copy GOAL Post to individuals. Limited numbers of hard copies MAY be available at the Second Amendment Foundation book table at WAC gun shows.

"The right of the individual citizen to bear arms in defense of himself, or the state, shall not be impaired, but nothing in this section shall be construed as authorizing individuals or corporations to organize, maintain or employ an armed body of men."
Article 1, Section 24
Constitution of the State of Washington

Copyright 2011 Gun Owners Action League of WA
GOAL Post 2011-12

Legislative Update from Olympia 25 March 2011

SHB 1923 PASSES OUT OF SENATE JUDICIARY
CHAMBER CUT-OFF PASSES
TITLE-ONLY BILLS FILED
WSP BACK-PEDALS ON AR-15 RECORDS
100th BIRTHDAY OF THE .45 AUTOMATIC

On 22 March the Senate Judiciary Committee passed out SHB 1923 (Goodman D-45) on a 7-0 vote. The bill now goes to Senate Rules awaiting a pull to the floor. The bill prohibits anyone who fails to pass a NICS check from receiving a CPL, in effect harmonizing state and federal law (only with regard to CPL issue).

The second policy committee cut-off passed a few hours ago. Bills that have not passed out of the policy committee (Judiciary in the case of most gun bills) are dead for the session. At this time, all three gun-related bills listed below are still in play for the session.

Twenty-two "title only" bills were filed in the Senate by Senator Ed Murray (D-43), chairman of the Senate Ways & Means Committee. This is a typical maneuver to "reserve" bill numbers, usually for fiscal bills. But two of the bills, SBs 5891 and 5892, carry the title "relating to criminal justice." While these are probably intended to be fleshed out as budget bills relating to criminal justice spending (or spending cuts), a broad title like that opens the door to games being played and things slipped into the bill(s).

The Washington State Patrol is back-pedaling swiftly after firearms dealers, the gun owning public -- and nearly three dozen state legislators, led by Rep. Matt Shea (R-4) -- raised the alarm over the WSP letter to firearms dealers seeking broad information about the sale or acquisition of AR-15s (and clones) and AR-15 lower receivers a week ago. It seems there may be ONE RIFLE missing, possibly from the State Patrol inventory. Rather than work with the BATFE, who has jurisdiction over federal firearm licensees, they decided to keep it in-house -- except for their clumsy outreach to more than 1,000 licensed Washington firearm dealers! The Patrol still seeks cooperation and information from dealers (legitimately so, in my opinion), but acknowledges it has no authority to ask for the records.

As I opined last week, it's more a case of overzealousness on the part of the WSP's investigative division and a lack of understanding of federal laws regulating firearm dealers and insensitivity to the privacy concerns of gun owners. No nefarious schemes to create an AR-15 registry in the Evergreen State -- for now.

Tuesday, 29 March 2011, marks the 100th birthday of the Automatic Pistol, Caliber .45, M1911. It was on that day in 1911 that the U.S. Army adopted the now-famous .45 automatic. Designed by inventive genius John Moses Browning under contract to Colt, the 1911 served as out standard service pistol until 1985, when it was replaced by the Beretta M9 in 9mm. Several specialized military units still use the 1911, as well as police departments and private citizens all across the country -- and all over the world. In addition to dozens of manufacturers in the U.S. (Model 1911s and clones), it was produced under license in Norway and Argentina, and was even pressed into service by Nazi Germany as the Pistole 657(n).

BILL STATUS:

The following bills are still under consideration for the 2011-12 biennium:

Bill # Subject Sponsor Status

HB 1016 Suppressor use Blake (D-19) S. Rules

HB 1455 Restoration of rights McCune (R-2) S. Rules

SHB 1923 CPL qualification Goodman (D-45) S. Rules

Key to abbreviations: S. = Senate, H. = House, Jud = Judiciary

GOAL POSITION ON BILLS

HB 1016 SUPPORT

HB 1455 SUPPORT

SHB 1923 SUPPORT

HEARING(S) SCHEDULED:

No public hearings remain for gun-related bills.

LEGISLATIVE HOT LINE: You may reach your Representatives and Senator by calling the Legislative Hotline at 1-800-562-6000. Toll free!!! The hearing impaired may obtain TDD access at 1-800-635-9993. Also toll free!!!

1-800-562-6000 TDD 1-800-635-9993

OTHER DATA: Copies of pending legislation (bills), legislative schedules and other information are available on the legislature's web site at "www.leg.wa.gov". Bills are available in Acrobat (.pdf) format. You may download a free version of Adobe Acrobat Reader from Adobe's web site (http://www.adobe.com). You may also obtain hard copy bills, initiatives, etc, in the mail from the Legislative Bill Room FREE OF CHARGE by calling 1-360-786-7573. Copies of bills may also be ordered toll free by calling the Legislative Hotline at (800) 562-6000. You may also hear floor and committee hearing action live at http://www.tvw.org/ (you need "RealAudio" to do this, available free at the TVW web site).

By reading the House and Senate "bill reports" (hbr, sbr) for each bill, you can see how individual committee members voted. By reading the "roll call" for each bill, you can see how the entire House or Senate voted on any bill. The beauty of the web site is that ALL this information is available, on line, to any citizen.

GET THE WORD OUT: If you want to subscribe to the GOAL Post by e-mail, send a message to "jwaldron@halcyon.com". Please pass GOAL Post on to anyone you believe may have an interest in protecting our rights. Better yet, make a couple of copies of this message, post it on your gun club’s bulletin board, and leave copies with your local gun shop(s). PERMISSION IS HEREBY GRANTED TO DUPLICATE OR REDISTRIBUTE GOAL POST PROVIDED IT IS REPRODUCED IN ITS ENTIRETY WITHOUT TEXTUAL MODIFICATION AND CREDIT IS GIVEN TO GOAL. I can be reached at "jwaldron@halcyon.com" or by telephone at (425) 985-4867. Unfortunately, I am unable to mail hard copy GOAL Post to individuals. Limited numbers of hard copies MAY be available at the Second Amendment Foundation book table at WAC gun shows.

"The right of the individual citizen to bear arms in defense of himself, or the state, shall not be impaired, but nothing in this section shall be construed as authorizing individuals or corporations to organize, maintain or employ an armed body of men."
Article 1, Section 24
Constitution of the State of Washington

Copyright 2011 Gun Owners Action League of WA
GOAL Post 2011-11

Legislative Update from Olympia 18 March 2011

HB 1016 AWAITING SENATE FLOOR VOTE
PUBLIC HEARING HELD ON SHB 1923
HB 1455 PASSES OUT OF SENATE JUDICIARY
WSP FISHING EXPEDITION?

The Senate Rules Committee moved HB 1016 to the Second Reading Calendar. This means it is one step away from a vote by the full Senate.

A public hearing was conducted today on SHB 1923 (CPL qualification). The bill now awaits a vote by the Senate Judiciary Committee, which must come before next Friday's (25 March) policy committee cut-off.

HB 1455 (restoration of firearm rights) was passed by the Senate Judiciary Committee and sent to Senate Rules where it awaits a pull to the floor. The Judiciary Committee made a minor revision to the bill, mandating the clerk of the superior court(s) to maintain records of how many such petitions for restoration are filed and approved.

Earlier this week most, if not all, firearms dealers in Washington received a letter from the Washington State Patrol asking for data on ALL AR-15s (and clones) and AR-15 lower receivers sold or purchased by the dealers over the past nine months. The information sought was reportedly requested pursuant to an investigation of a stolen AR-15.

Apparently the ATF (who has jurisdiction over tracing stolen firearms) was not consulted by the WSP before they initiated their query. It would appear the WSP request FAR EXCEEDED their authority to seek such information. It typically would take a subpoena to gain access to such a broad sweep of transaction records. And that would have to be signed by a judge, after presentation of sufficient probable cause.

It is my understanding most dealers politely declined to comply, as was their right. The Bellevue-based Second Amendment Foundation jumped right into this issue. Meanwhile, in addition to ATF asking questions (of the WSP), several state legislators want to know what's going on.

BATFE has broad legal authority to examine firearm dealers' records. Local law enforcement has much more limited authority in cases like this. I suspect this was simple overreach by an over-zealous and perhaps inexperienced WSP detective. At least I hope that's what it was. Eternal vigilance remains the price of liberty!

BILL STATUS:

The following bills are still under consideration for the 2011-12 biennium:

Bill # Subject Sponsor Status

HB 1016 Suppressor use Blake (D-19) S. Rules

HB 1455 Restoration of rights McCune (R-2) S. Rules

SHB 1923 CPL qualification Goodman (D-45) S. Jud.

Key to abbreviations: S. = Senate, H. = House, Jud = Judiciary,

GOAL POSITION ON BILLS

HB 1016 SUPPORT

HB 1455 SUPPORT

SHB 1923 SUPPORT

HEARING(S) SCHEDULED:

No public hearings remain for gun-related bills.

LEGISLATIVE HOT LINE: You may reach your Representatives and Senator by calling the Legislative Hotline at 1-800-562-6000. Toll free!!! The hearing impaired may obtain TDD access at 1-800-635-9993. Also toll free!!!

1-800-562-6000 TDD 1-800-635-9993

OTHER DATA: Copies of pending legislation (bills), legislative schedules and other information are available on the legislature's web site at "www.leg.wa.gov". Bills are available in Acrobat (.pdf) format. You may download a free version of Adobe Acrobat Reader from Adobe's web site (http://www.adobe.com). You may also obtain hard copy bills, initiatives, etc, in the mail from the Legislative Bill Room FREE OF CHARGE by calling 1-360-786-7573. Copies of bills may also be ordered toll free by calling the Legislative Hotline at (800) 562-6000. You may also hear floor and committee hearing action live at http://www.tvw.org/ (you need "RealAudio" to do this, available free at the TVW web site).

By reading the House and Senate "bill reports" (hbr, sbr) for each bill, you can see how individual committee members voted. By reading the "roll call" for each bill, you can see how the entire House or Senate voted on any bill. The beauty of the web site is that ALL this information is available, on line, to any citizen.

GET THE WORD OUT: If you want to subscribe to the GOAL Post by e-mail, send a message to "jwaldron@halcyon.com". Please pass GOAL Post on to anyone you believe may have an interest in protecting our rights. Better yet, make a couple of copies of this message, post it on your gun club’s bulletin board, and leave copies with your local gun shop(s). PERMISSION IS HEREBY GRANTED TO DUPLICATE OR REDISTRIBUTE GOAL POST PROVIDED IT IS REPRODUCED IN ITS ENTIRETY WITHOUT TEXTUAL MODIFICATION AND CREDIT IS GIVEN TO GOAL. I can be reached at "jwaldron@halcyon.com" or by telephone at (425) 985-4867. Unfortunately, I am unable to mail hard copy GOAL Post to individuals. Limited numbers of hard copies MAY be available at the Second Amendment Foundation book table at WAC gun shows.

"The right of the individual citizen to bear arms in defense of himself, or the state, shall not be impaired, but nothing in this section shall be construed as authorizing individuals or corporations to organize, maintain or employ an armed body of men."
Article 1, Section 24
Constitution of the State of Washington

Copyright 2011 Gun Owners Action League of WA

Bill #	Subject	Sponsor	Status
HB 1016	Suppressor use	Blake (D-19)	To Gov.
HB 1455	Restoration of rights	McCune (R-2)	S. Rules
SHB 1923	CPL qualification	Goodman (D-45)	S. Rules

GOAL Post 2011-10

Legislative Update from Olympia 11 March 2011

CHAMBER CUT-OFF PASSES
SBs 5112 AND 5634 DIE AWAITING SENATE VOTE
PUBLIC HEARINGS CONDUCTED ON HBs 1016 and 1455
HB 1016 PASSES SENATE JUDICIARY COMMITTEE
PUBLIC HEARING SCHEDULED FOR HB 1923

At 5 p.m. last Monday evening (incorrectly reported last week as Thursday) all bills that had not passed out of their original chamber (House or Senate) died for the remainder of the session. Senate Bills 5112 (suppressors) and 5634 (CPL background checks) were in the queue awaiting a Senate vote when the clock struck 5. There doesn't appear to be any malicious intent there -- more than 100 other bills suffered a similar fate.

At this point three gun-related bills remain in play: HB 1016 (suppressors), HB 1455 (restoration of firearm rights) and HB 1923 (CPL qualification). HBs 1016 and 1455 were heard in public testimony on 9 March. HB 1016 (which has duplicate language to SB 5112, unanimously passed by the committee earlier in the session) passed out of Senate Judiciary and is now in Senate Rules awaiting a vote of the full Senate. HB 1455 is still waiting for a committee vote.

A public hearing is scheduled for HB 1923 in Senate Judiciary on Friday, March 18. The hearing will take place in the Senate Judiciary Committee in Senate Hearing Room "1" in the John A. Cherberg Senate Office Building.

BILL STATUS:

The following bills have been filed for the 2011-12 biennium:

Bill #	Subject	Sponsor	Status
HB 1016	Suppressor use	Blake (D-19)	S. Rules
HB 1455	Restoration of rights	McCune (R-2)	S. Jud.
SHB 1923	CPL qualification	Goodman (D-45)	S. Jud.
SB 5112	Suppressor use	Hatfield (D-19)	Died
SSB 5634	CPL background checks	Hargrove (D-24)	Died

Key to abbreviations: S. = Senate, H. = House, HumSer = Human Services and Corrections, Jud = Judiciary, PubSaf = Public Safety & Emergency Preparedness, W&M = Ways and Means

GOAL POSITION ON BILLS

HB 1016	SUPPORT
HB 1455	SUPPORT
HB 1923	SUPPORT
SB 5112	SUPPORT
SB 5634	SUPPORT

HEARING(S) SCHEDULED:

3/18
1:30 p.m.

HB 1923

Senate Judiciary Committee
Senate Hearing Room 1
John A. Cherberg (JAC) Bldg

1-800-562-6000 TDD 1-800-635-9993

GOAL Post 2011-9

Legislative Update from Olympia 4 March 2011

SHB 1923 PASSES HOUSE 95-0
SBs 5112 AND 5634 AWAITING SENATE VOTE
CHAMBER CUT-OFF NEXT THURSDAY (10 MARCH)
PUBLIC HEARINGS ON HBs 1016 AND 1455
WYOMING ENACTS CONSTITUTIONAL CARRY
WINCHESTER .223 AMMO RECALL

SHB 1923, amending CPL background checks, passed out of the House on a 95-0 vote with three members excused (typically because they are busy on other legislative matters). It now goes to Senate Judiciary for action.

Next Thursday, 10 March, is the chamber cut-off date. Bills that have not passed out of their chamber (House or Senate) of origin are considered dead for the session. At this time two bills remain awaiting a floor vote, both in the Senate. They are SBs 5112 (suppressors) and 5634 (CPL background checks). At this point it is anticipated they will pass the Senate without a problem.

Public hearings have been scheduled in the Senate Judiciary Committee on HBs 1016 (suppressors) and 1455 (restoration of firearm rights). The hearing will be conducted at 1:30 p.m. on Wednesday, 9 March in Senate Hearing Room "1" in the John A. Cherberg Senate Office Building.

The Wyoming legislature passed, and Governor Mead signed into law, a bill making Wyoming the fourth state (after Vermont, Alaska and Arizona) to enact "constitutional carry" (i.e. unlicensed concealed carry). Similar bills are pending in half a dozen other states. At this time it appears the bill only applies to Wyoming residents and licensees from states with whom Wyoming has reciprocity (this does NOT include Washington). The law takes effect 1 July.

Winchester has recalled several lots of "Ranger" .223 ammunition. Additional information including specific lot numbers is available at http://www.winchester.com/library/news/Pages/News-ProductWarningandRecall.aspx

BILL STATUS:

The following bills have been filed so far for the 2011-12 biennium: (This is the last week ALL bills will be listed. Starting next week we will list only bills still under consideration.)

Bill #	Subject	Sponsor	Status
HB 1006	Knife blade length	Appleton (D-23)	Died
HB 1016	Suppressor use	Blake (D-19)	S. Jud.
HB 1066	Black powder storage and transport	Bailey (R-10)	Died
HB 1238	CPL age requirement lowered	Orcutt (R-18)	Died
HB 1400	Firearms on snowmobiles	Ross (R-14)	Died
HB 1455	Restoration of rights	McCune (R-2)	S. Jud.
HB 1508	Range protection	Takko (D-19)	Died
HB 1628	CPL background checks	Kirby (D-29)	Died
HB 1638	Harmonize state/federal law for CPLs	Goodman (D-45)	Died
HB 1729	State agency gun security devices	Hurst (D-31)	Died
SHB 1923	CPL qualification	Goodman (D-45)	S. Jud.
HB 1990	WA Firearms Freedom Act	Shea (R-4)	Died.

SB 5112	Suppressor use	Hatfield (D-19)	S. Rules
SB 5313	Juvenile weapon possession	Kline (D-37)	Died.
SB 5418	No duty to retreat	Becker (R-2)	Died
SB 5592	College weapon prohibition	Shin (D-21)	Died
SSB 5634	CPL background checks	Hargrove (D-24)	S. Rules
SB 5697	State agency gun security devices	Hargrove (D-24)	Died

Key to abbreviations: S. = Senate, H. = House, HumSer = Human Services and Corrections, Jud = Judiciary, PubSaf = Public Safety & Emergency Preparedness, W&M = Ways and Means

GOAL POSITION ON BILLS:

HB 1016	SUPPORT
HB 1455	SUPPORT
HB 1923	SUPPORT

SB 5112	SUPPORT
SB 5634	SUPPORT

HEARING(S) SCHEDULED:

3/09
1:30 p.m.

HBs 1016, 1455

Senate Judiciary Committee
Senate Hearing Room 1
John A. Cherberg (JAC) Bldg

1-800-562-6000 TDD 1-800-635-9993

GOAL Post 2011-8

Legislative Update from Olympia 25 February 2011

POLICY COMMITTEE CUT-OFF PASSES -- BILLS DIE
HB 1455 PASSES HOUSE 94-0
NO PUBLIC HEARINGS SCHEDULED
NOTE ABOUT THE FIREARMS FREEDOM ACT

Wednesday, 23 February, was the policy committee cut-off date. Bills that had not passed out of their original policy committee are generally considered dead for the session. As I reported last week, only five gun bills remain under consideration.

This has been fairly quite week in Olympia -- from a firearms-related perspective, with most legislators' attention focused on budget-related bills (in addition to the current budget shortfall crisis, the odd-year session is the one where the biennium -- two year -- budget is passed). Two Senate bills (SBs 2112 and 5634) remain in Senate Rules awaiting a floor vote, while only one House bill (SHB 1923) awaits a House floor vote. The next critical cut-off date isn't until March 10, when bills must pass their chamber (House or Senate) of origin, so we still have almost two weeks for these bills to move.

On Monday, 22 February, HB 1455 passed the House on a 94-0 vote (4 absent) and has been assigned to the senate Judiciary Committee. No action is expected on this bill until after the 10 March chamber cut-off.

There are no public hearings scheduled for gun-related bills. The next series of public hearings will come after the 10 March chamber cut-off.

I should have added last week in reference to HB 1990, the Washington Firearms Freedom Act: the BATFE has sent letters to FFLs in those states that have passed similar legislation warning them that the federal government does not consider the state legislation to be valid. If a dealer (FFL) elects to sell a firearm to a resident without following the required federal laws and regulations, he or she will find himself prosecuted by the local U.S. Attorney.

The purpose of the FFA is not to allow Bubba to build firearms in his basement to sell to his neighbors, it is to open the door to an attack on Congress' inappropriate use of the Commerce Clause to justify more than 90% of the laws it passes. The Supreme Court rarely declares laws unconstitutional on Commerce Clause grounds, although it probably should do so. In 1995, they declared the original federal Gun Free School Zone Act unconstitutional. Congress merely reenacted it a year later, with a new preamble that discussed the decline in quality of education based on schoolyard violence and claimed that affected interstate commerce. Right! The new (1996) federal GFSZ law has yet to be challenged.

BILL STATUS:

The following bills have been filed so far for the 2011-12 biennium:

Bill #	Subject	Sponsor	Status
HB 1006	Knife blade length	Appleton (D-23)	Died
HB 1016	Suppressor use	Blake (D-19)	S. Jud.
HB 1066	Black powder storage and transport	Bailey (R-10)	Died
HB 1238	CPL age requirement lowered	Orcutt (R-18)	Died
HB 1400	Firearms on snowmobiles	Ross (R-14)	Died
HB 1455	Restoration of rights	McCune (R-2)	S. Jud.
HB 1508	Range protection	Takko (D-19)	Died
HB 1628	CPL background checks	Kirby (D-29)	Died
HB 1638	Harmonize state/federal law for CPLs	Goodman (D-45)	Died
HB 1729	State agency gun security devices	Hurst (D-31)	Died
SHB 1923	CPL qualification	Goodman (D-45)	H. Rules
HB 1990	WA Firearms Freedom Act	Shea (R-4)	Died.
SB 5112	Suppressor use	Hatfield (D-19)	S. Rules
SB 5313	Juvenile weapon possession	Kline (D-37)	Died.
SB 5418	No duty to retreat	Becker (R-2)	Died
SB 5592	College weapon prohibition	Shin (D-21)	Died
SSB 5634	CPL background checks	Hargrove (D-24)	S. Rules
SB 5697	State agency gun security devices	Hargrove (D-24)	Died

Key to abbreviations: S. = Senate, H. = House, HumSer = Human Services and Corrections, Jud = Judiciary, PubSaf = Public Safety & Emergency Preparedness, W&M = Ways and Means

GOAL POSITION ON BILLS

HB 1016	SUPPORT
HB 1455	SUPPORT
HB 1923	SUPPORT
SB 5112	SUPPORT
SB 5634	SUPPORT

HEARING(S) SCHEDULED:

None

1-800-562-6000 TDD 1-800-635-9993

GOAL Post 2011-7

Legislative Update from Olympia 18 February 2011

POLICY COMMITTEE CUT-OFF 23 FEBRUARY
NO JUDICIARY COMMITTEE HEARINGS SCHEDULED
HB 1923 PASSES JUDICIARY COMMITTEE ON 12-1 VOTE
SB 5634 PASSES SENATE COMMITTEE UNANIMOUSLY
NEW PRO-GUN BILL FILED: HB 1990, WA FFA

The first major legislative hurdle will be reached on Wednesday, 23 February. Bills that have not passed out of their original policy committee by the end of that day are generally considered dead for the session. (Bills can be "pulled" from a committee, but that's not a common practice -- unless it's something leadership wants.) Of the 18 gun/arms-related bills tracked below, only five remain in play.

Normally there would be a couple of House and/or Senate Judiciary Committee hearings remaining before the 23 February cut-off. A last opportunity to push bills through the system. But next week's schedule, published Wednesday evening, shows NO judiciary committee hearings. Unless the rules are waived, we're only looking at four gun bills continuing in the process for the remainder of the session, HBs 1016, 1455 and 1923, and SBs 5112 and 5634.

HB 1923 passed out of the House Judiciary Committee on 17 February on a 12-1 vote, following a short amendment. It now goes to House Rules awaiting a vote by the full House (floor vote). As amended, the bill will supposedly meet the BATFE standard for a NICS waiver, meaning anyone with a CPL issued after the effective date of the law (IF it passes) will not require a NICS check before taking delivery of a firearm.

The Senate Human Services and Corrections Committee passed SB 5634 in an amended form the evening of 17 February. All seven committee members voted for the amended bill. SB 5634 is the Senate counterpart (duplicate) of HB 1628 and would drop the requirement for a DSHS mental health check for CPL issue in favor of a NICS check. Per federal and state law, NICS is supposed to maintain records of disqualifying mental health data from the states.

Rep. Matt Shea (R-4) has once again introduced the Washington Firearms Freedom Act (FFA) in HB 1990. (Rep. Shea filed a similar bill, HB 2079, in the 2009-2010 session of the legislature.) The WA FFA would declare federal regulation of firearms and related materials manufactured solely within and for sale within the state of Washington to be null and void. (Authority for the BATFE to regulate firearm sales nationwide is supposedly covered by the Commerce Clause of the U.S. Constitution. If a commodity does not cross state lines, what authority does any federal agency have to regulate that commodity?)

28 States have introduced FFAs in their respective legislatures. It has passed in seven of the 28. Montana was the first state to pass the FFA. The Bellevue-based Second Amendment Foundation is funding a federal lawsuit, with both SAF and the Montana Sport Shooting Association as plaintiffs, seeking to uphold state FFAs and declare BATFE regulation of firearms under the Commerce Clause unconstitutional. The suit was filed in 2009, and dismissed by a federal judge in Helena, MT, in September of 2010. The case is currently being appealed to the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals.

Given the make-up of the Washington legislature and the control of both Judiciary Committees by Seattle Democrats, it is unlikely that the bill will go anywhere. I wonder what the Seattle caucus's attitude would be if a bill was filed declaring the Commerce Clause and other federal regulation null and void in the case of marijuana grown, sold and consumed solely within the state of Washington?

BILL STATUS:

The following bills have been filed so far for the 2011-12 biennium:

Bill #	Subject	Sponsor	Status
HB 1006	Knife blade length	Appleton (D-23)	H. Jud
HB 1016	Suppressor use	Blake (D-19)	S. Jud.
HB 1066	Black powder storage and transport	Bailey (R-10)	H. Jud.
HB 1238	CPL age requirement lowered	Orcutt (R-18)	H. Jud.
HB 1400	Firearms on snowmobiles	Ross (R-14)	H. Jud.
HB 1455	Restoration of rights	McCune (R-2)	H. Rules
HB 1508	Range protection	Takko (D-19)	H. Jud.
HB 1628	CPL background checks	Kirby (D-29)	H. Jud.
HB 1638	Harmonize state/federal law for CPLs	Goodman (D-45)	H. Jud.
HB 1729	State agency gun security devices	Hurst (D-31)	H. Jud.
SHB 1923	CPL qualification	Goodman (D-45)	H. Rules
HB 1990	WA Firearms Freedom Act	Shea (R-4)	H. Jud.
SB 5112	Suppressor use	Hatfield (D-19)	S. Rules
SB 5313	Juvenile weapon possession	Kline (D-37)	S. Jud.
SB 5418	No duty to retreat	Becker (R-2)	S. Jud.
SB 5592	College weapon prohibition	Shin (D-21)	S. Jud.
SSB 5634	CPL background checks	Hargrove (D-24)	S. HumSer.
SB 5697	State agency gun security devices	Hargrove (D-24)	S. Jud.

Key to abbreviations: S. = Senate, H. = House, HumSer = Human Services and Corrections, Jud = Judiciary, PubSaf = Public Safety & Emergency Preparedness, W&M = Ways and Means

GOAL POSITION ON BILLS

HB 1006	OPPOSE
HB 1016	SUPPORT
HB 1066	SUPPORT
HB 1238	SUPPORT
HB 1400	SUPPORT
HB 1455	SUPPORT
HB 1508	SUPPORT
HB 1628	SUPPORT
HB 1638	SUPPORT
HB 1729	NEUTRAL
HB 1923	SUPPORT
HB 1990	SUPPORT
SB 5112	SUPPORT
SB 5313	NEUTRAL
SB 5418	SUPPORT
SB 5592	OPPOSE
SB 5634	SUPPORT
SB 5697	NEUTRAL

HEARING(S) SCHEDULED:

None

1-800-562-6000 TDD 1-800-635-9993

GOAL Post 2011-6

Legislative Update from Olympia 11 February 2011

TWO NEW GUN BILLS FILED THIS WEEK
HB 1016 PASSES OUT OF THE HOUSE
SB 5112 PASSES OUT OF SENATE JUDICIARY
HB 1455 PASSES OUT OF HOUSE JUDICIARY
PUBLIC HEARING SCHEDULED ON SB 5634
INTERESTING DEVELOPMENT REGARDING HBs 1638 AND 1923
MOST PRO-GUN BILLS NOT MOVING

Two new bills were filed this week. SB 5607, by Senator Jim Hargrove (D-24), is a counterpart (duplicate( to HB 1729 dealing with standards for firearm security devices issued by state agencies. HB 1923, by Rep. Roger Goodman (D-45) duplicates the language contained in HB 1638, but with a much narrower title. See the item below addressing partisan games being played.

HB 1016, authorizing the use of legally possessed firearm suppressors (silencers), passed out of the House on 7 February on an 88-4 vote. It went to the Senate where it was assigned to the Senate Judiciary Committee. The four individuals voting AGAINST the bill were Representatives Darnielle (D-27), Hudgins (D-11), Hunter (D-48) and Springer (D-45).

SB 5112, the counterpart bill to HB 1016, passed out of the Senate Judiciary Committee on 9 February on a unanimous vote. It now goes to Senate Rules awaiting a floor vote. The bill could be voted on by the entire Senate sometime next week.

HB 1455 passed out of the House Judiciary Committee on 10 February. It now goes to House Rules awaiting a House floor vote.

A public hearing has been scheduled for SB 5634. The hearing will be conducted in the Senate Human Services and Corrections Committee at 10 a.m. on 17 February.

The games begin: Differences currently exist between state and federal law regarding who can possess a firearm. Federal prohibitions are slightly broader than state prohibitions. For that reason, a Concealed Pistol License application contains a warning notice that even if an individual qualifies for a CPL, he or she may still be prosecuted under federal law for illegal possession of a firearm. HB 1638 was filed to harmonize state and federal law to prevent this jeopardy. Earlier this week, HB 1923 was filed, with the same language as HB 1638, but with a much narrower title, thus preventing pro-gun amendments from being offered. Despite the fact that no public hearing was conducted on HB 1923, it is scheduled for a vote in committee on 17 February. No vote is scheduled for HB 1638. This is clearly an attempt to block one or more pro-gun amendments that had been prepared for HB 1638 by Rep. Matt Shea (R-4) and possibly others.

Most of the pro-gun bills filed in the House are still sitting in the House Judiciary Committee with no favorable action taken. Given solid Seattle Democrat control of both the House and Senate Judiciary committees this is not surprising. You might want to contact your representatives and ask them to push for public hearings or executive action, as appropriate, on HBs 1066, 1238, 1400 and 1638.

BILL STATUS:

The following bills have been filed so far for the 2011-12 biennium:

Bill #	Subject	Sponsor	Status
HB 1006	Knife blade length	Appleton (D-23)	H. Jud
HB 1016	Suppressor use	Blake (D-19)	S. Jud.
HB 1066	Black powder storage and transport	Bailey (R-10)	H. Jud.
HB 1238	CPL age requirement lowered	Orcutt (R-18)	H. Jud.
HB 1400	Firearms on snowmobiles	Ross (R-14)	H. Jud.
HB 1455	Restoration of rights	McCune (R-2)	H. Rules
HB 1508	Range protection	Takko (D-19)	H. Jud.
HB 1628	CPL background checks	Kirby (D-29)	H. Jud.
HB 1638	Harmonize state/federal law for CPLs	Goodman (D-45)	H. Jud.
HB 1729	State agency gun security devices	Hurst (D-31)	H. Jud.
HB 1923	CPL qualification	Goodman (D-45)	H. Jud.
SB 5112	Suppressor use	Hatfield (D-19)	S. Rules
SB 5313	Juvenile weapon possession	Kline (D-37)	S. Jud.
SB 5418	No duty to retreat	Becker (R-2)	S. Jud.
SB 5592	College weapon prohibition	Shin (D-21)	S. Jud.
SB 5634	CPL background checks	Hargrove (D-24)	S. HumSer.
SB 5697	State agency gun security devices	Hargrove (D-24)	S. Jud.

Key to abbreviations: S. = Senate, H. = House, HumSer = Human Services and Corrections, Jud = Judiciary, PubSaf = Public Safety & Emergency Preparedness, W&M = Ways and Means

GOAL POSITION ON BILLS

HB 1006	OPPOSE
HB 1016	SUPPORT
HB 1066	SUPPORT
HB 1238	SUPPORT
HB 1400	SUPPORT
HB 1455	SUPPORT
HB 1508	SUPPORT
HB 1628	SUPPORT
HB 1638	OPPOSE UNLESS AMENDED
HB 1729	NEUTRAL
HB 1923	OPPOSE
SB 5112	SUPPORT
SB 5313	NEUTRAL
SB 5418	SUPPORT
SB 5592	OPPOSE
SB 5634	SUPPORT
SB 5697	NEUTRAL

HEARING SCHEDULED:

17 Feb
10:00 a.m.

SB 5634

Senate Human Services and Corrections
Senate Hearing Room "1"
John A. Cherberg (JAC) Bldg

1-800-562-6000 TDD 1-800-635-9993

GOAL Post 2011-5

Legislative Update from Olympia 4 February 2011

HB 1455 CLARIFICATION
THREE NEW GUN BILLS FILED
PUBLIC HEARING SCHEDULED ON HB 1455, 1628, 1638 ON 7 FEB
FEDERAL GUN BILLS TO WATCH

I received a couple of e-mails asking if HB 1455 further restricted where an individual could apply to have his or her firearms rights restored. Not so -- current law does not specify where an individual may apply, so you could be given a run-around as to where to apply (e.g. county of residence? county where the crime or commitment occurred? Thurston County Superior Court?). Under HB 1455, the individual HAS THE CHOICE of applying in his or her county of residence OR the county where the conviction or commitment took place. Either of those courts MUST accept the petition.

Three new gun-related bills were filed this week: SB 5592, by Sen. Paull Shin (D-21), amends the brandishing statute (RCW 9.41.270) to ban all firearms at all colleges statewide. (Current law varies by college -- some have total bans, some just ban students or students and employees from possessing firearms.) SB 5634, by Sen. Jim Hargrove (D-24), is a counterpart to HB 1628. HB 1729, by Rep. Chris Hurst (D-31) requires state agencies to issue approved security devices or containers to all public employees armed by the controlling agency (e.g. police, sheriff's office, etc). The bill ONLY APPLIES to public agencies and is contained in Title 42, NOT the general state firearms code (RCW 9.41).

On Monday, 7 February at 1:30 p.m. the House Judiciary Committee will conduct a public hearing on HBs 1455, 1628 and 1638. We oppose HB 1638 in its current form, but an amendment is being prepared that -- if passed -- would make Washington a NICS-alternative state, meaning anyone with a valid, current CPL would not have to undergo a NICS check to take delivery of any firearm.

Keep in mind that bills have until 23 February to clear their original policy committee. Bills that have not passed by that date will be considered dead for the session.

A quick comment on federal gun bills. At this time more than a dozen gun bills have been filed in the 112th Congress -- some good, some bad. The ones to keep an eye on at this time are H.R. 308 and S.32, both full capacity magazine ban bills, and H.R. 367 and 496 that would prohibit lawful possession of a firearm anywhere where a member of congress was making a public appearance. All are outgrowths of the Rep. Gabrielle Giffords shooting on January 8th. At the federal level, bills can be attached to other legislation as riders or amendments. Beware.

BILL STATUS:

The following bills have been filed so far for the 2011-12 biennium:

Bill #	Subject	Sponsor	Status
HB 1006	Knife blade length	Appleton (D-23)	H. Jud
HB 1016	Suppressor use	Blake (D-19)	H. Rules
HB 1066	Black powder storage and transport	Bailey (R-10)	H. Jud.
HB 1238	CPL age requirement lowered	Orcutt (R-18)	H. Jud.
HB 1400	Firearms on snowmobiles	Ross (R-14)	H. Jud.
HB 1455	Restoration of rights	McCune (R-2)	H. Jud.
HB 1508	Range protection	Takko (D-19)	H. Jud.
HB 1628	CPL background checks	Kirby (D-29)	H. Jud.
HB 1638	Harmonize state/federal law for CPLs	Goodman (D-45)	H. Jud.
HB 1729	State agency gun security devices	Hurst (D-31)	H. [sic]
SB 5112	Suppressor use	Hatfield (D-19)	S. Jud.
SB 5313	Juvenile weapon possession	Kline (D-37)	S. Jud.
SB 5418	No duty to retreat	Becker (R-2)	S. Jud.
SB 5592	College weapon prohibition	Shin (D-21)	S. Jud.
SB 5634	CPL background checks	Hargrove (D-24)	S. HumSer.

Key to abbreviations: S. = Senate, H. = House, HumSer = Human Services and Corrections, Jud = Judiciary, PubSaf = Public Safety & Emergency Preparedness, W&M = Ways and Means

GOAL POSITION ON BILLS

HB 1006	OPPOSE
HB 1016	SUPPORT
HB 1066	SUPPORT
HB 1238	SUPPORT
HB 1400	SUPPORT
HB 1455	SUPPORT
HB 1508	SUPPORT
HB 1628	SUPPORT
HB 1638	OPPOSE UNLESS AMENDED
HB 1729	NEUTRAL
SB 5112	SUPPORT
SB 5313	NEUTRAL
SB 5418	SUPPORT
SB 5592	OPPOSE
SB 5634	SUPPORT

HEARING SCHEDULED:

7 February
1:30 p.m.

HBs 1455, 1628, 1638

House Judiciary Committee
House Hearing Room "A" John L. O'Brien Bldg (JLO)

1-800-562-6000 TDD 1-800-635-9993

GOAL Post 2011-4

Legislative Update from Olympia 28 January 2011

SEVERAL GUN-RELATED BILLS FILED
PUBLIC HEARING HELD ON SB 5112
PUBLIC HEARING SCHEDULED ON SB 5313

Several new gun-related bills have been filed this week. HB 1628, by Rep. Steve Kirby (D-29), amends the background check process for CPLs. It deletes the Department of Social and Health Services and adds the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) to the data bases to be queried.

HB 1638, by Rep. Roger Goodman (D-45), adds federal firearm disqualifiers to the CPL eligibility requirements. At this time, federal restrictions on firearm possession are more stringent than state law (e.g. individuals with dishonorable discharges or who have renounced their U.S. citizenship, etc). This would harmonize state and federal law and eliminate the possibility that an individual could be issued a CPL under state law only, while still being a prohibited person under federal law. Properly amended, this would also make Washington a NICS-alternative state, meaning no NICS check is required of anyone holding a valid, current CPL.

SB 5418, by Sen. Randi Becker (R-2) would extend "no duty to retreat" beyond the home to a motor vehicle. "Black letter law" (previous state Supreme Court decisions) already accomplishes this and more. But the bill also provides for civil immunity for an act of legitimate self defense, something current law does not cover.

A public hearing was held by Senate Judiciary on SB 5112 (suppressor use) Wednesday, 26 January. As with the hearing in House Judiciary, no one testified against the bill. If passed by both the House and Senate in unaltered form, it may be the first gun bill to go to Governor Gregoire this year.

A public hearing on SB 5313 (juvi weapon possession) is scheduled to be held on Tuesday, 1 February in the Senate Judiciary Committee, Senate Hearing Room 1. The bill deals primarily with sentencing guidelines for juvenile weapons offenses.

BILL STATUS:

The following bills have been filed so far for the 2011-12 biennium:

Bill #	Subject	Sponsor	Status
HB 1006	Knife blade length	Appleton	(D-23)	H. Jud
HB 1016	Suppressor use	Blake (D-19)	H. Rules
HB 1066	Black powder storage and transport	Bailey (R-10)	H. Jud.
HB 1238	CPL age requirement lowered	Orcutt (R-18)	H. Jud.
HB 1400	Firearms on snowmobiles Ross	(R-14)	H. Jud.
HB 1455	Restoration of rights	McCune (R-2)	H. Jud.
HB 1508	Range protection	Takko (D-19)	H. Jud.
HB 1628	CPL background checks Kirby	(D-29)	H. Jud.
HB 1638	Harmonize state/federal law for CPLs	Goodman (D-45)	H. Jud.

SB 5112	Suppressor use	Hatfield (D-19)	S. Jud.
SB 5313	Juvenile weapon possession	Kline (D-37)	S. Jud.
SB 5418	No duty to retreat	Becker (R-2)	S. Jud.

Key to abbreviations: S. = Senate, H. = House, Jud = Judiciary, Fish/Ecol = Fisheries, Ecology & Parks, JuvJust = Juvenile Justice, Educ = Education, LocGov = Local Government, NatRes = Natural Resources, Ecology & Parks, PubSaf = Public Safety & Emergency Preparedness, W&M = Ways and Means

GOAL POSITION ON BILLS

HB 1006	OPPOSE
HB 1016	SUPPORT
HB 1066	SUPPORT
HB 1238	SUPPORT
HB 1400	SUPPORT
HB 1455	NEUTRAL
HB 1508	SUPPORT
HB 1628	SUPPORT
HB 1638	OPPOSE UNLESS AMENDED

SB 5112	SUPPORT
SB 5313	NEUTRAL
SB 5418	SUPPORT

HEARING SCHEDULED:

1 February
10:00 a.m.

SB 5313

Senate Judiciary Committee
Senate Hearing Room "1"
John A. Cherberg Bldg (JAC)

1-800-562-6000 TDD 1-800-635-9993

GOAL Post 2011-3

Legislative Update from Olympia 23 January 2011

LATE TRANSMISSION DUE TO TRAVEL
NEW BILLS INTRODUCED
ACTION ON BILLS
PUBLIC HEARING(S) SCGHEDULED
SAFE STORAGE ISSUE MAY RISE AGAIN

Transmission of this issue of GOAL Post is late due to extended travel to attend the annual Shooting, Hunting and Outdoor Trades (SHOT) show and the annual meeting of the Florida Sport Shooting Association. Next week we should be back on the Friday night transmission schedule.

Several new gun-related bills have been introduced. HB 1238, by Rep. Ed Orcutt (R-18), would lower the age of CPL issue from 21 to 18 and lower reciprocal recognition of out-of-state carry licenses to those states who issue to individuals under 21 years of age. HB 1400, by Rep. Charles Ross (R-14), would allow loaded firearms to be carried on snowmobiles when used for designated lawful purposes. HB 1455, by Rep. Jim McCune (R-2), would amend applications for restoration of firearm rights. HB 1508, by Rep. Dean Takko (D019), would protect firearm ranges from noise abatement lawsuits if certain conditions exist. SB 5112, by Sen. Brian Hatfield (D-19) is a companion bill to HB 1016 and would allow use of suppressors (silencers) if lawfully possessed under federal law. SB 5313 changes sentencing guidelines for certain "juvenile in possession of a weapon" violations.

HB 1016 (suppressor use) is now in House Rules awaiting a pull to the House floor for a vote. A public hearing on HB 1066 (black powder storage and transport) was held on January 20th. The House Judiciary committee will take executive action (vote) on it on January 26th

A public hearing will be held on SB 5212 (suppressor use) in Senate Judiciary on January 26th at 1:30 p.m. If you attend the hearing, please sign in in support ("pro") of the bill. If you choose to testify, keep it short and sweet.

There have been a couple of accidental shootings in the past several months involving minors. I have heard from sources that a new "safe storage of firearms" bill may be circulating. At this point I have not seen any language on the bill, so I have no idea what it will mandate. Keep in mind that the existing reckless endangerment statute (RCW 9A.36.050) already addresses this issue. Gun control advocates claim it does not cover acts of omission (failure to take safeguards) but there are court cases where it HAS been used successfully to punish failure to take safety precautions. We don't need a new law.

BILL STATUS:

The following bills have been filed so far for the 2011-12 biennium:

Bill #	Subject	Sponsor	Status
HB 1006	Knife blade length	Appleton (D-23)	H. Jud
HB 1016	Suppressor use	Blake (D-19)	H. Rules
HB 1066	Black powder storage and transport	Bailey (R-10)	H. Jud.
HB 1238	CPL age requirement lowered	Orcutt (R-18)	H. Jud.
HB 1400	Firearms on snowmobiles	Ross (R-1x)	H. Jud.
HB 1455	Restoration of rights	McCune (R-2)	H. Jud.
HB 1508	Range protection	Takko (D-19)	not yet assigned
SB 5112	Suppressor use	Hatfield (D-19)	S. Jud.
SB 5313	Juvenile weapon possession	Kline (D-37)	S. Jud.

GOAL POSITION ON BILLS

HB 1006	OPPOSE
HB 1016	SUPPORT
HB 1066	SUPPORT
HB 1238	SUPPORT
HB 1400	SUPPORT
HB 1455	UNDER REVIEW
HB 1508	SUPPORT
SB 5112	SUPPORT
SB 5313	UNDER REVIEW

HEARING SCHEDULED:

26 January
1:30 p.m.

SB 5112

Senate Judiciary Committee
Senate Hearing Room "1"
John A. Cherberg Bldg (JAC)

1-800-562-6000 TDD 1-800-635-9993

GOAL Post 2011-2

Legislative Update from Olympia 14 January 2009

LEGISLATIVE CUT-OFF CALENDAR ADOPTED
LEGISLATIVE CONTACT INFORMATION
ATTENDING PUBLIC HEARINGS AND TESTIFYING ON BILLS
HB 1016 (SUPPRESSORS) PASSES OUT OF COMMITTEE
PUBLIC HEARING SCHEDULED ON HB 1066 (BLACK POWDER)
EMINENT DOMAIN BILLS
TUCSON SHOOTING AFTERMATH

One of the first steps taken by a new legislature is adoption of certain dates called cut-off dates. A bill must clear certain committees by the designated cut-off date or be considered dead for the session (with some exceptions). The first cut-off date is for the first policy committee a bill is assigned to. February 23rd, 2011, is the first cut-off date for this legislative session. All bills must pass out of their first policy committee (most gun bills go to Judiciary) or be considered dead for the session. Keep in mind only about half of bills filed actually make it past this first cut-off.

2011 Regular Session cut-off dates are:
- February 23 -- bill must pass original policy committee
- February 28 -- bill must pass fiscal committee if there is sufficient fiscal impact
- March 10 -- bill must pass out of chamber of origin (House or Senate)
- April 4 -- bill must pass policy committee in second chamber (Senate or House)
- April 15 -- last day to pass second chamber (with exceptions)
- April 24 -- final day of session (Easter Sunday, so the session will likely end a day or two before)
Office spaces, telephone numbers and committee assignments have been made. Contact information for your legislators can be found at:

     http://www.leg.wa.gov/Senate/Senators/

     http://www.leg.wa.gov/House/Representatives/

If you're not sure which legislative district you live in, you can find it here:

     http://apps.leg.wa.gov/DistrictFinder/Default.aspx

One of the services provided by legislators is informing constituents on bills of interest. You should write a short note or e-mail to your Senator and Representatives and ask them to keep you informed of gun bills filed (or other bills of interest) and their progress through the system.

Citizens are encouraged to attend public hearings on bills they are interested in, either favorably or unfavorably. If you attend a public hearing, please be sure to sign in on the bill sign-in sheet (each bill has its own sign-in sheet). It asks for your name, address and contact information. It also gives you the option to state your position on the bill (i.e. "support/pro" or "oppose/con" and whether you would like to testify on the bill.

A few suggestions about testifying: First, testimony is usually limited to no more than three minutes -- keep it short and to the point. Begin by stating your name, where you live and your position (for or against) on the bill. Second, do NOT use this public testimony to attack the motives of people on the other side of the issue. Personal attacks are forbidden (and they're in poor taste, anyway). Third, if someone before you has already made one of the points you wanted to raise, skip it and go on to the next. Fourth, limit your testimony to making two or three points. Legislators have short attention spans (or put more politely, brevity is a virtue). Once you've done it once or twice, you'll find it comes easy.

Keep in mind, too, that the committee chair has total discretion on whom he or she calls on to testify. Don't feel left out if your name isn't selected. Your time will come.

HB 1016 (allows use of lawfully-possessed suppressors) passed out of the House Judiciary Committee on Thursday, 13 January with a unanimous vote. It now goes to House Rules, where it will sit until pulled to the House floor for a vote by the full House of Representatives. The fact that the bill has nearly 30 co-sponsors, from both parties, helps!

The House Judiciary Committee will conduct a public hearing on HB 1066 (relaxing regulations concerning black powder storage and transportation) at 10:00 a.m. on Thursday, January 20th.

A terrible tragedy occurred last Saturday when a deranged individual attempted to assassinate Arizona Democrat Congresswomen Gabrielle Giffords, killing six and wounding 14 others, including the Congresswoman. (Just for the record, Congresswoman Giffords has a pro-gun voting record in her previous terms in Congress, and is a gun owner herself.)

Predictably, the "usual suspects" (gun control advocates and the mainstream media) lost no time in attempting to exploit last Saturday's tragic shootings in Tucson. Despite the fact that the shooter was clearly a lunatic with no identifiable political bias, or actually a slight left-wing bias, and the fact that he passed the requisite background check when he purchased the pistol used in the shooting, we're hearing the usual cries for more restrictions on law-abiding gun owners. At the top of the list is another Clinton-style "high capacity" magazine ban -- "high capacity" being defined as any magazine holding more than 10-rounds. At this time it appears unlikely that any Tucson-driven gun control legislation will pass Congress or the state legislature. But emotion is what drives gun bills, not logic.

Polling by both Gallup and Rasmussen after the Tucson shootings indicate the public does NOT believe more gun control laws will help prevent incidents such as this. Depending on the poll conducted, between 62% (Rasmussen) and 72% (Gallup) of citizens polled believe new gun laws would be ineffective. Whether our elected officials read and heed this message remains to be seen! The last U.S. Congress certainly ignored public polling data.

BILL STATUS:

All bills filed during the 2009-10 biennium are dead. The following bills have been filed so far for the 2011-12 biennium:

Bill # Subject Sponsor Status

HB 1006 Knife blade length Appleton (D-23) H. Jud

HB 1016 Suppressor use Blake (D-19) H. Rules

HB 1066 Black powder storage and transport Bailey (R-10) H. Jud.

Key to abbreviations: S. = Senate, H. = House, Jud = Judiciary, Fish/Ecol = Fisheries, Ecology & Parks, JuvJust = Juvenile Justice, Educ = Education, LocGov = Local Government, NatRes = Natural Resources, Ecology & Parks, PubSaf = Public Safety & Emergency Preparedness, W&M = Ways and Means

GOAL POSITION ON BILLS

HB 1006 OPPOSE

HB 1016 SUPPORT

HB 1066 SUPPORT

HEARING SCHEDULED:

20 January
10:00 a.m. HB 1016 House Judiciary Committee
House Hearing Room "A"
John L. O'Brien Bldg (JLOB)

LEGISLATIVE HOT LINE: You may reach your Representatives and Senator by calling the Legislative Hotline at 1-800-562-6000. Toll free!!! The hearing impaired may obtain TDD access at 1-800-635-9993. Also toll free!!!

1-800-562-6000 TDD 1-800-635-9993

OTHER DATA: Copies of pending legislation (bills), legislative schedules and other information are available on the legislature's web site at "www.leg.wa.gov". Bills are available in Acrobat (.pdf) format. You may download a free version of Adobe Acrobat Reader from Adobe's web site (http://www.adobe.com). You may also obtain hard copy bills, initiatives, etc, in the mail from the Legislative Bill Room FREE OF CHARGE by calling 1-360-786-7573. Copies of bills may also be ordered toll free by calling the Legislative Hotline at (800) 562-6000. You may also hear floor and committee hearing action live at http://www.tvw.org/ (you need "RealAudio" to do this, available free at the TVW web site).

By reading the House and Senate "bill reports" (hbr, sbr) for each bill, you can see how individual committee members voted. By reading the "roll call" for each bill, you can see how the entire House or Senate voted on any bill. The beauty of the web site is that ALL this information is available, on line, to any citizen.

GET THE WORD OUT: If you want to subscribe to the GOAL Post by e-mail, send a message to "jwaldron@halcyon.com". Please pass GOAL Post on to anyone you believe may have an interest in protecting our rights. Better yet, make a couple of copies of this message, post it on your gun club’s bulletin board, and leave copies with your local gun shop(s). PERMISSION IS HEREBY GRANTED TO DUPLICATE OR REDISTRIBUTE GOAL POST PROVIDED IT IS REPRODUCED IN ITS ENTIRETY WITHOUT TEXTUAL MODIFICATION AND CREDIT IS GIVEN TO GOAL. I can be reached at "jwaldron@halcyon.com" or by telephone at (425) 985-4867. Unfortunately, I am unable to mail hard copy GOAL Post to individuals. Limited numbers of hard copies MAY be available at the Second Amendment Foundation book table at WAC gun shows.

"The right of the individual citizen to bear arms in defense of himself, or the state, shall not be impaired, but nothing in this section shall be construed as authorizing individuals or corporations to organize, maintain or employ an armed body of men."
     Article 1, Section 24
     Constitution of the State of Washington

Copyright 2011 Gun Owners Action League of WA
GOAL Post 2011-1

Legislative Update from Olympia 10 January 2011

LEGISLATURE CONVENES MONDAY, 10 JANUARY
LEGISLATIVE TUTORIAL
LEGISLATIVE CALENDAR
THREE PRE-FILED ARMS BILLS
PUBLIC HEARING SCHEDULED ON HB 1016
DEMOCRAT CAUCUS DIVIDED ON GUNS
LEGISLATOR DIRECT TELEPHONE NUMBERS

The 62nd (biennial) Washington state legislature convenes today, Monday, January 10th for its long (105 day) session. The principal focus of the long legislative session is supposed to be the biennial budget, but rest assured several other topics, including firearms, will receive attention. The Democrats retained their majority in the 2010 election, so they continue to control BOTH chambers (House and Senate), however the Republicans picked up five seats in each chamber, so Democrat control isn't as solid as in the last session.

For those new to legislative affairs, here’s how the process works: When a bill is filed in the House or Senate (or both, simultaneously, called “companion bills”) it is assigned to a policy committee. Most gun-related bills go to the Senate Judiciary Committee in the Senate. In the House it’s a little more complicated, as it may be sent to House Judiciary, House Public Safety, or House Juvenile Justice. Public hearings may be held, after which the bill may (or may not) be voted out of committee. If the bill has a fiscal impact (usually an expenditure of more than $50,000), it must then go to Senate Ways & Means or one of a couple of House fiscal committees. The bill then goes to the Senate or House Rules Committee, where it must be voted on to pass out to the floor for a full vote.

After a bill passes the Senate or House, it then goes over to the opposite chamber (House or Senate), where the whole process starts over again. If the bill passes the second chamber in the same form it passed the first, it goes to the governor for signature (or veto or partial veto). If changes are made in the second chamber, it goes back to the first for concurrence. It may also go to a conference committee from both chambers to resolve differences. The final version must pass both chambers.

The bill then goes to the Governor, who may sign it into law, veto (kill) the bill, or sign a partial veto (killing just selected section(s) of the bill). The governor may also allow a bill to become law without her (or his) signature. Most signed bills take effect on 1 July, although bills with an “emergency clause” (considered immediately necessary for public safety) take effect upon signature by the governor.

One of the first items of business in each session is the adoption of the session calendar, identifying dates by which bills must clear various hurdles. A bill that fails to clear the policy committee or chamber floor by the designated date is generally considered dead for the year, although they may be “resurrected” by parliamentary procedure. I’ll post the cut-off dates for the 2011 session in the next issue of GOAL Post.

Bills from the last session are dead. New bills must be filed for consideration by the 62nd Legislature, with new bill numbers. Three arms-related bills (I say "arms" vice "firearms" because one bill deals with knives) have already been filed. HB 1016 would allow legally-owned firearm suppressors to be used (current law allows them to be owned, but it is a gross misdemeanor to USE one to suppress the report of a firearm -- dumb, dumb, dumb). HB 1066 would increase the amount of black powder that could be stored in the home or transported. These two are pro-gun bills. HB 1006 is another story. Under current law, most knife controls exist at the local city or county level only. Some cities ban certain blade lengths, others do not. HB 1006 would make it illegal to possess ANY knife with a blade length of more than 3 1/2 inches anywhere in the state.

The "red wave" of major Republican victories stopped just short of the Washington border. Washington picked up one new Republican Congresswoman, when former State Rep. Jaime Hererra won Rep. Brian Baird's 3rd Congressional District seat in SW Washington. In the state legislature, Republicans won five seats each in the House and Senate, but Democrats still hold a majority in each chamber. We actually lost a few pro-gun Democrats in rural, swing districts. We still have a solid bloc of Democrat pro-gun Senators and Representatives who will vote on our side of the issue. This "road kill" caucus, joining with Republicans on gun issues, is what saves us in Olympia. If you live in a rural or even suburban district with Democrat Representatives or a Democrat Senator, it is important that you call their office and express concern about your gun rights. Ask them to keep you informed of any gun-related legislation. This lets them know that you are watching them on this issue.

The Legislature has not yet published new telephone and office directories because legislators are not sworn in until Monday, 10 January. The following links can be used at that time to identify direct contact information:
- http://www.leg.wa.gov/Senate/Senators/
- http://www.leg.wa.gov/House/Representatives/
BILL STATUS:

All bills filed during the 2009-10 biennium are dead. The following bills have been pre-filed for the 2011-12 biennium:

Bill # Subject Sponsor Status

HB 1006 Knife blade length Appleton (D-23) H. Jud (?)

HB 1016 Suppressor use Blake (D-19) H. Jud. (?)

HB 1066 Black powder storage and transport Bailey (R-10) ?

Key to abbreviations: S. = Senate, H. = House, Jud = Judiciary, Fish/Ecol = Fisheries, Ecology & Parks, JuvJust = Juvenile Justice, Educ = Education, LocGov = Local Government, NatRes = Natural Resources, Ecology & Parks, PubSaf = Public Safety & Emergency Preparedness, W&M = Ways and Means

GOAL POSITION ON BILLS

HB 1006 OPPOSE

HB 1016 SUPPORT

HB 1066 SUPPORT

HEARING SCHEDULED:

12 January
8:00 a.m. HB 1016 House Judiciary Committee
House Hearing Room "A", John L. O'Brien Bldg (JLOB)

LEGISLATIVE HOT LINE: You may reach your Representatives and Senator by calling the Legislative Hotline at 1-800-562-6000. Toll free!!! The hearing impaired may obtain TDD access at 1-800-635-9993. Also toll free!!!

1-800-562-6000 TDD 1-800-635-9993

OTHER DATA: Copies of pending legislation (bills), legislative schedules and other information are available on the legislature's web site at "www.leg.wa.gov". Bills are available in Acrobat (.pdf) format. You may download a free version of Adobe Acrobat Reader from Adobe's web site (http://www.adobe.com). You may also obtain hard copy bills, initiatives, etc, in the mail from the Legislative Bill Room FREE OF CHARGE by calling 1-360-786-7573. Copies of bills may also be ordered toll free by calling the Legislative Hotline at (800) 562-6000. You may also hear floor and committee hearing action live at http://www.tvw.org/ (you need "RealAudio" to do this, available free at the TVW web site).

By reading the House and Senate "bill reports" (hbr, sbr) for each bill, you can see how individual committee members voted. By reading the "roll call" for each bill, you can see how the entire House or Senate voted on any bill. The beauty of the web site is that ALL this information is available, on line, to any citizen.

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"The right of the individual citizen to bear arms in defense of himself, or the state, shall not be impaired, but nothing in this section shall be construed as authorizing individuals or corporations to organize, maintain or employ an armed body of men."
Article 1, Section 24
Constitution of the State of Washington

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