When the Democrat-controlled Pennsylvania House of Representatives passed a measure earlier this week banning so-called “ghost guns,” they drew the ire of the National Rifle Association’s Institute for Legislative Action (NRA-ILA).
“Since taking the Majority in 2023, House Majority Democrats have become a one-trick-pony,” ILA said in an action alert. “They went back to the well this week for more gun control.
“With all the issues facing the state, they are obsessed with election-year politics and the need to score cheap political points with their anti-gun base, which has an insatiable appetite for banning guns.”
The measure, HB 777, passed the House by a very close 104-to-97 vote. Since the session began, the Pennsylvania House has introduced dozens of anti-gun measures and has already acted upon more than a half dozen such bills.
According to the texts of the measure: “A person who sells or otherwise transfers any of the following, separately or as part of a firearm kit, not imprinted with a serial number registered with a Federal firearms licensee, commits a felony of the third degree: (i) a firearm frame or receiver; (ii) a firearm muffler or silencer frame or receiver; (iii) a split or modular firearm frame or receiver; or (iv) a partially complete, disassembled or inoperable firearm frame or receiver.”
In Pennsylvania, a third-degree felony can carry prison term of up to seven years and a fine up to $15,000.
According to NRA-ILA, the measure is fraught with problems.
“‘Ghost gun’ is a manufactured term meant to sound scary,” ILA wrote. “The reality is that the practice of self-manufacturing firearms for personal use has a long and established tradition in the United States. It is already a federal and state crime for a prohibited person to possess a firearm of any kind, and it is against the law to knowingly transfer a firearm to a prohibited person. Ultimately, this bill is not going to impact public safety in any meaningful way. It is only going to impact hobbyists and gun collectors.”
ILA also said that the bill takes in way more territory than it should.
“This bill is poorly crafted and includes parts and accessories,” ILA stated. “The bill is so Draconian that you do not even need to possess an operable gun to be guilty of a felony. It also does not make an exception for antique firearms without serial numbers.
“If Harrisburg Democrats would invest as much time in locking up and prosecuting criminals as they do harassing Pennsylvania’s law-abiding gun owners, the streets of cities like Philadelphia would be much safer.”
The measure next goes to the state Senate for consideration.
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