CONCORD — The National Rifle Association on Friday misinformed its New Hampshire members with regard to pending legislation aimed at expanding background checks to include private sales of firearms.

CONCORD — The National Rifle Association on Friday misinformed its New Hampshire members with regard to pending legislation aimed at expanding background checks to include private sales of firearms.



In an e-mail, the NRA urged New Hampshire members to contact their state representatives and tell them to oppose House Bill 1589 that, if passed, will require licensed firearms dealers to conduct background checks for all gun sales — including those made at gun shows and by private parties.



In its e-mail to Granite State members, the NRA called the proposed bill "extreme legislation" that "would criminalize commonplace activities such as loaning a rifle to a friend on a hunting trip, allowing a friend to try out your gun at a shooting range or selling your gun to a friend or neighbor — subjecting the transferor to the penalties of a Class B felony."



However, the text of the bill referenced by the NRA, by number, clearly exempts those activities from the proposed law.



Catherine Mortenson, from the NRA's public affairs office, said she would look into the discrepancies between the NRA's e-mail and the bill text, but the NRA offered no comment in spite of the Portsmouth Herald's multiple requests, by phone and e-mail, over two business days.



As currently written, HB 1589 would make the following exceptions:



The temporary transfer of firearms "at an established shooting range authorized by the governing body of the jurisdiction in which such range is located, provided the firearm is kept at such range during the entirety of the transfer." The temporary transfer of a gun "while hunting if the hunting is legal in all places where the person to whom the firearm is transferred possesses the firearm and the person to whom the firearm is transferred has completed all training and holds all licenses or permits required for such hunting." The transfer of firearms between immediate family members that includes spouses, parents, children, grandparents, grandchildren and siblings, if the transfer is a loan or a gift. This exception does not allow for the transfer of a gun to an immediate family member who is barred by law from having a gun, or if there is reason to believe the person would use the gun unlawfully. The transfer of a firearm between spouses "for the purposes of immediate self-defense provided the transfer lasts only as long as immediately necessary."



Exceptions in the proposed law also allow for the transfer of firearms between members of law enforcement, corrections agents, federal marshals and National Guardsmen, when the transfer is related to their official duties. Also exempt would be licensed gunsmiths for the purpose of servicing and repairing firearms, as well as carriers and employees who transfer firearms as part of their jobs.



Exemptions in the House bill also include the transfer of firearms by inheritance due to a death, during shooting competitions and to minors under the age of 18 "for lawful hunting, sporting, or educational purposes while under the direct supervision and control of a responsible adult who is not prohibited from possessing firearms."



In its Friday e-mail to New Hampshire members, the NRA called the proposed legislation "a misguided anti-gun bill" and said the law would "only affect law-abiding gun owners by creating cumbersome mandates and restrictions on the lawful purchase and possession of firearms."



"Criminals, by definition, violate laws, especially gun control laws," the e-mail alert stated. "They don't register their firearms, purchase firearms through licensed dealers or subject themselves to any gun control schemes that only penalize law-abiding citizens. Furthermore, it is already illegal to knowingly sell or transfer a firearm to someone classified as a prohibited person, and is a felony for a prohibited person to buy, own or possess a firearm."



One of eight state representatives who sponsored HB 1589, David Borden, D-New Castle, said he has been receiving "lots of e-mail" about the bill, "some more rational than others."



"It seems to be more controversial than we thought it would be," said Borden, a member of the House Commerce and Consumer Affairs Committee, which is currently studying the bill.



Borden said the aim of the bill is "to keep guns from criminals," and a number of Supreme Court decisions have exempted felons from Second Amendment protections. Borden said he expects a vote by the committee within days.