Advertisement CA bill seeks to lead nation in gun violence research Sen. Wolk: Time for CA to use UC system create firearm research center Share Shares Copy Link Copy

A bill to create a gun violence research center in California passed a key Senate hearing Wednesday.The Senate Education Committee voted 7-2 to approve legislation that would create a Firearm Violence Research Center at the University of California system."In the gun debate, frankly there seems to be a real lack of evidence and information about what really works," said State Sen. Lois Wolk, D-Davis, who authored Senate Bill 1006. "I think it's time for California to do the rest of the country a favor and, using our wonderful UC system, to create a firearm research center."The research center would cost $5 million in state funding over the course of five years.If approved, it would be the first time in more than 20 years firearm violence research is conducted at a government level. In 1996, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention discontinued its gun violence research after Congress approved legislation that restricted funding.Wolk believes that decision hurt the country."We have a tremendous number of deaths and injuries that take place, and we haven't made much progress in reducing that," she said.The 1996 decision was introduced by former Arkansas Rep. Jay Dickey. He now regrets his decision and has come out strongly in favor of more research, including Wolk's bill."He's had second thoughts, which is terrific," she said.For Wolk, good research leads to good policy. She said the CDC has done similar studies to help the automobile industry throughout the decades."Seat belts, different kinds of safety glass, bumpers, child seats," she said. "We didn't ban cars. But we did make them much safer."There are gun owners who are wary that the research and statistics are only valuable with context."As a gun owner and gun person, a lot of us are very skeptical," said Jay Brown, owner of Shootin' Shack Guns in Elk Grove."We've already got so many gun laws out there, right now, that could prevent crimes," Brown said.Even though the bill does not directly affect gun laws, Brown is wary that the initial intention of research will be manipulated and ultimately take rights away from law-abiding gun owners."They sound like they're good ideas, they sound like they are helpful, but they have been exploited in the past," Brown said. "You can manipulate those numbers to sound any way you want them to."If approved, the UC Office of the President and Board of Regents will choose a campus as a base for the research center. If UC Davis is selected, Wolk believes the center would be at the UC Davis Medical Center in Sacramento.The bill will next be heard by the Senate's Public Safety Committee. Wolk believes it could head to the floor by May.If it's included in the budget, work can begin on the UC Firearm Research Center as early as July.