Weekly Wrap: Office of Gun Violence Prevention Hosts Lawmakers to Talk Gun Bans
White House invites lawmakers to talk on gun control, IL gun ban set to take effect Jan. 1, and bill to fund smart gun tech introduced.
PPT Editor-in-Chief. Professional journalist 15+ years. NRA & BLS instructor. 2000+ articles
We review products independently. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn a commission to help support our testing. Learn more.
Welcome to a weekly series here on Pew Pew Tactical dedicated to the gun news you need to know.
So, keep reading for this week’s notable news headlines…
Table of Contents
SCOTUS Rejects Emergency Appeal, Allows Illinois Gun Ban to Take Effect
A ban on “assault weapons” and high-capacity magazines will now take effect in Illinois after the U.S. Supreme Court rejected an emergency appeal.
This marks the second time the court has refused to intervene and overturn the law passed in 2023. Two other lower courts have already upheld the law, known as the Protect Illinois Communities Act.
The appeal was brought by the National Association for Gun Rights and an Illinois firearms dealer who used the Bruen decision to argue that the gun ban is “not consistent with the nation's history and tradition of firearms regulation and fails constitutional muster.”
Despite the plea to prevent the law from moving forward, SCOTUS chose to leave the law in place with no explanation.
Hannah Hill, Executive Director of the National Foundation for Gun Rights, the legal arm of the National Association for Gun Rights, said despite the setback, the fight isn’t over.
“The Supreme Court denied our emergency appeal - hopefully because they are waiting for our official cert petition,” Hill said on Twitter.
“The Court has taken serious notice of this case twice, & we look forward to giving them the opportunity to weigh in on the merits.”
The law will take effect in Illinois on January 1, 2024.
Office of Gun Violence Prevention Hosts Lawmakers to Talk Gun Bans & More
The White House’s new Office of Gun Violence Prevention brought 100 legislators to Washington to discuss gun control.
The event set the stage for the Biden Administration’s Safer States policy, which would establish state offices dedicated to advancing gun initiatives.
During the event, the Biden Administration introduced a multi-page agenda explaining the plan for the offices and initiatives.
Under the policy, each state would set up an Office of Gun Violence Prevention. This office would take its cues from the White House’s own Office of Gun Violence Prevention. The office would also be responsible for helping advance policies like red flag laws, gun lock mandates, and universal background checks.
The plan also includes measures to create Gun Violence Trauma Recovery Centers and Gun Violence Crisis Response Teams, as well as enacting bans on “assault weapons, high-capacity magazines, and ghost guns."
Vice President Kamala Harris applauded the meeting on social media and said it was a step in the right direction to save lives.
“Today, I met with more than 100 state legislators and gun safety advocates to share policy solutions in our continued work to prevent gun violence,” Harris said. “We have the answers. We must continue to lead with courage and act to save lives.”
The meeting comes mere months after the White House hosted law enforcement officials from all over the country to discuss so-called assault weapons and high-capacity magazine bans.
Bill Would Fund Smart Gun Tech with Taxpayer Funds
Three Democratic legislators introduced a new bill that would create a $10 million pilot program to fund smart gun technology from taxpayer funds.
Reps. Mark DeSaulnier (CA-10), Zoe Lofgren (CA-18), and Don Beyer (VA-08) authored H.R. 6697, known as the Advancing Gun Safety Technology Act, earning support from organizations like Brady Campaign, Everytown, and Giffords.
The program would be housed underneath the Department of Justice’s National Institute of Justice but would help fund “private-sector commercialization of gun safety technology” such as smart guns.
Smart guns have been a hotly debated topic in the gun community over the years, with gun owners expressing concerns about the efficacy of the technology.
But Rep. Beyer argues the tech has the potential to save more lives.
“Gun safety technology has the potential to save some of the tens of thousands of American lives lost to gun violence each year,” said Beyer.
“Many of those deaths are suicides and accidental shootings, which smart gun tech is designed to help prevent. Our legislation would help spur innovation to develop these technologies and bring products incorporating them to market, preventing gun violence and saving lives. I appreciate my colleagues Rep. DeSaulnier and Rep. Lofgren for their leadership on this legislation, and look forward to building a coalition to advance it.”
This isn’t the first time the bill has made an appearance. It was previously introduced by former Rep. Jackie Speier (D-CA) in 2019 but failed to gain steam.