| This week Governor Josh Shapiro renewed calls to reduce gun violence in Pennsylvania and invest in community groups and law enforcement officers who investigate and prosecute gun violence. Last year, Pennsylvania budgeted $40 million for Violence Intervention and Prevention (VIP) grants. We also set aside $50 million for public school physical safety grants – this was a decrease from $100 million that was provided in the 2022/23 budget.
This year, Governor Shapiro is proposing we invest $100 million to reduce gun violence and safeguard our communities, including a $37.5 million increase to the VIP program. I support this initiative and hope to see it through during budget negotiations.
The Governor also called on the legislature to pass “significant gun reform legislation” and while we have passed quality gun reform bills in the past year, yesterday was not the case. Two bills were brought before the house on third consideration that would have been crucial to reducing crime and gun violence. HB 335 from Rep. Sanchez would have enacted a ban on multi-burst trigger activators – a firearm modification that can turn a semiautomatic weapon into essentially a fully automatic machine gun. This means the firearm is now able to expel over 600 rounds per minute – more than nine rounds per second. Speaking as an Air Force Veteran with a marksmanship rating and extensive training on the usage of firearms, there is absolutely no place for this kind of weapon to be used in civilian life.
The second bill, which originally had bipartisan support, HB 2206 from Rep. Bellmon, would have required all licensed firearm importers, manufacturers and dealers to submit their records of sale to Pennsylvania State Police electronically – rather than the current method by mail – unless there is a reported electronic failure, or the seller conducts 20 or fewer firearm transactions a year. This would have been to the benefit of our law enforcement officers and agencies to help them track firearms used in crimes and reduce their current administrative burden.
Both bills failed by one vote.
While this was deeply disappointing and disheartening to watch in session, I believe bills like HB 335 and 2206 are critical steps that Pennsylvania must take if we truly intend to reduce crime and gun violence in our communities. We have a lot of work to do, and we’re not finished yet.
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