Richmond, VA –-(Ammoland.com)- The “Assault Firearms” bill (HB 961) in Virginia passed the Public Safety Committee on Friday.

On Monday, the legislature read the bill for the first time in the full House of Delegates. The full House of Delegates will vote on the bill before the annual crossover day. Crossover day is where the Senate sends all passed measures to the House and vice versa.

The bill will ban magazines that hold more than 12-rounds, Shotguns that hold more than seven shells, semi-automatic rifles with certain cosmetic features, suppressors, and trigger actuators. There are other things in the bill that gun owners are overlooking.

The bill reads:

“Assault firearm” includes any part or combination of parts designed or intended to convert, modify, or otherwise alter a firearm into an assault firearm, or any combination of parts that may be readily assembled into an assault firearm. “Assault firearm” does not include (i) a firearm that has been rendered permanently inoperable, (ii) an antique firearm as defined in § 18.2-308.2:2, or (iii) a curio or relic as defined in § 18.2-308.2:2.

This passage could potentially ban parts used to repair broken rifles. Banning the transfer of these rifles to anyone other than the government would mean once the rifle breaks, it is useless. If the owner repairs their gun or sells it, they are committing a felony.

Gun rights groups from around the country expressed concern about the passage of HB 961 out of the committee. One of these groups is Gun Owners of America that has been fighting hard alongside VCDL in the Commonwealth to defeat the attack on gun rights. Senior Vice President, Erich Pratt, is dismayed the bill has gotten as far as it has.

“The radical Democrats in Richmond are poking the proverbial bear. Gun owners have a long memory,” Pratt told AmmoLand. “And they are motivated more so than ever before to get involved politically. Over 98% of gun owners polled say they would NOT reelect a Delegate or Senator who votes for a ban on commonly owned firearms, such as what passed out of a House committee today. Gun owners will definitely “remember in November.”

Democrats hid another passage in the bill. It reads:

B. It is unlawful for any person to import, sell, transfer, manufacture, or purchase an assault firearm, provided that a person may transfer an assault firearm to another person if: 1. The transfer is a bona fide gift made by or to a member of a transferor's immediate family as defined in § 6.2-1300; 2. The transfer occurs by operation of law; 3. The person receiving the assault firearm is an executor or administrator of an estate or is a trustee of a trust created by a will, and the assault firearm to be transferred is property of such estate or trust; 4. The transferor is an executor or administrator of an estate or is a trustee of a trust created by a will, and the assault firearm to be transferred is the property of such estate or trust; 5. The transfer is temporary and is necessary to prevent imminent death or great bodily harm; 6. The transfer is temporary and occurs within the continuous presence of the owner of the firearm; 7. The sale or transfer of an assault firearm is to an authorized representative of the Commonwealth or any subdivision thereof as part of an authorized voluntary gun buy-back or give-back program; 8. The transfer is of an antique firearm as defined in § 18.2-308.2:2; or 9. The transfer occurs at a shooting range, shooting gallery, or other area designated for the purpose of target shooting, for use during target practice, a firearms safety or training course or class, a shooting competition, or any similar lawful activity. C. A violation of this section is punishable as a Class 6 felony. D. The provisions of this section shall not apply to (i) any government officer, agent, or employee, or member of the Armed Forces of the United States, to the extent that such person is otherwise authorized to acquire an assault firearm and does so while acting within the scope of his duties; (ii) the manufacture of an assault firearm by a firearms manufacturer for the purpose of sale to any branch of the Armed Forces of the United States or to a law-enforcement agency in the Commonwealth for use by that agency or its employees, provided that the manufacturer is properly licensed under federal, state, and local laws; (iii) the sale or transfer of an assault firearm by a licensed dealer to any branch of the Armed Forces of the United States or to a law-enforcement agency in the Commonwealth for use by that agency or its employees; (iv) the purchase by any person of his service handgun pursuant to § 59.1-148.3.

This hidden provision would make it illegal for the manufacturing of “assault firearms” in Virginia unless the intent is to sell it to the military or the police. Several manufacturers in Virginia would be put out of business or forced to move out of Virginia. The people employed by these companies would lose their jobs and cause economic hardships on the very people Democrats claim they care about the most, the working class.

In fact, they showed how much they cared about the public by only giving them six minutes to express their opposition to HB 961. After the committee voted the public was kicked out of the room by Capitol police under threat of arrest on orders from the Democrats. Talking to long time observers none could recall that happening before.

The bill is far from passing. HB 961 will have to pass out of the House of Delegates before being sent to the Senate. There is already one Democrat on record stating he will not vote for the bill. If another Democrat Senator breaks with their party line over the bill, then the law will fail.

AmmoLand encourages all gun owners across the Commonwealth to contact their representatives and encourage them to vote no on HB 961. Bloomberg will not stop at Virginia, but we have a shot of handing him a defeat in his war against guns.

Readers can email their representatives directly at https://gunowners.org/va02062020/?utm_source=alert&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=va-alert2-2020-02-06

About John Crump

John is a NRA instructor and a constitutional activist. He is the former CEO of Veritas Firearms, LLC and is the co-host of The Patriot News Podcast which can be found at www.blogtalkradio.com/patriotnews. John has written extensively on the patriot movement including 3%'ers, Oath Keepers, and Militias. In addition to the Patriot movement, John has written about firearms, interviewed people of all walks of life, and on the Constitution. John lives in Northern Virginia with his wife and sons and is currently working on a book on leftist deplatforming methods and can be followed on Twitter at @crumpyss, on Facebook at realjohncrump, or at www.crumpy.com.