JLM Shooters Supply in Urbandale hasn't sold a bump stock in years, said owner Mike Sporer. It doesn't stock them, and it never got requests for them.

That changed when politicians began calling for their prohibition after a man used the device in a mass shooting that killed more than 50 concertgoers in Las Vegas earlier this month.

"Anytime that they talk about banning things, folks feel like — even if they had no (previous) interest — they feel like they need to get one," said Sporer, who said his store is now fielding more calls from people seeking to buy the device or learn more about it. "Every time they talk about assault weapon bans and that sort of thing, we sell hundreds of them."

A bump stock, which effectively makes a semi-automatic weapon fire at speeds that rival a fully automatic weapon, could become a point of contention when the Iowa Legislature convenes its 2018 session in January.

Iowa Rep. Art Staed, D-Cedar Rapids, said that if Congress doesn't outlaw bump stocks, Iowa lawmakers "could and they should" take action to ensure they're not legal within state lines.

But some gun advocacy groups already are digging in for the debate.

"We do not and will not support any gun control legislation," reads an action alert sent by the Iowa Firearms Coalition to its members about a week after the shooting.

"We're not giving an inch!" Iowa Gun Owners Executive Director Aaron Dorr wrote in a blog post Oct. 10 outlining his opposition to a potential bump stock ban.

"What we're seeing is this is being used as kind of a toe in the door of the gun control push in D.C.," Dorr said in an interview with The Des Moines Register. "They're trying to use this as a scapegoat to advance a larger agenda. So we oppose any gun control in any form."

Iowa's expanded gun laws

During the 2017 legislative session, Iowa lawmakers passed a sweeping set of changes to the state's firearms laws that dramatically enhanced Iowans' ability to buy and use guns.

In April, former Gov. Terry Branstad signed House File 517, which allows children to use handguns under adult supervision, expands existing "stand your ground" laws, creates an avenue for Iowans to sue cities or counties that enact gun-free zones, legalizes short-barreled rifles and shotguns, allows permit-holders to carry handguns in the Capitol and creates confidentiality for permit-holders.

At the time, Branstad said the legislation "makes Iowa one of the most pro-Second Amendment states in the country."

Supporters hailed it as "monumental," while detractors worried it could lead to an uptick in gun violence.

Rep. Matt Windschitl, R-Missouri Valley, spearheaded that legislative effort, as well as a bill in 2016 that legalized gun suppressors, which are often referred to as silencers.

He said he anticipates having conversations about outlawing bump stocks in Iowa in 2018, and he said he wouldn't immediately rule out a potential ban.

"There may be an overwhelming push from the grassroots to say, 'Hey, this is something we don’t want to have out there,'" said Windschitl, whose family owns a gun shop. "I haven’t had a whole deal of conversation on it so far. Me, personally, I don’t honestly believe outlawing them would change the outcome of Las Vegas. I think it’s reactionary.

"But if that’s the consensus by the folks in different communities out there, then yes, I’ll keep an open mind."

Staed called the idea a "no-brainer."

"I don’t see any purpose for taking a semiautomatic weapon and making it into an automatic weapon with some kind of device," he said.

Dorr was skeptical, though, that any measure aimed at curbing access to firearms or bump stocks would advance.

"That's going to go nowhere fast in Iowa in 2018," he said.

Fully automatic weapons, or guns that fire continuously when the trigger is held down, are tightly regulated by the federal government. Only guns manufactured before 1986 are allowed, and buyers must undergo an extensive federal background check, fill out paperwork and obtain a tax stamp. Those guns are banned in Iowa.

A bill introduced during the last legislative session would have lifted Iowa's ban, but it failed to gain traction and did not advance.

Sporer, the gun shop owner, said he's happy with Iowa's legal landscape surrounding firearms, especially after this latest round of legislation was approved. He said that, at least for his part, he'd be happy to see the firearms community compromise on bump stocks, which he characterizes as a "novelty" item.

"I own a gun store," he said. "I’m a big believer in letting law abiding citizens have what they want. But this is one item it seems like, I think we can do without it. And I understand the slippery slope argument and all that. I just don’t think this is where we want to draw our line."