Late last night the senate took up and amended the bill, voted favorably and have sent it to conference committee, where it will be finalized and sent to Governor Baker to be signed.
GOAL Alert
10/27 Update 2: ALERT – PLEASE CONTACT YOUR STATE LEGISLATORS AND THE MEMBERS OF THE CONFERENCE COMMITTEE TODAY URGE THEM TO STRIP THE “LINSKY LANGUAGE” FROM THE FINAL VERSION OF THE BUDGET.
Late last night the senate took up and amended the bill, voted favorably and have sent it to conference committee, where it will be finalized and sent to Governor Baker to be signed.
The senate version was amended to include Senator Tarr’s language, which is a drastic improvement over the Linsky language. We will get one or the other of these versions on the final bill, there is no other option at this time.
Take Action!
Please contact the members of the Conference Committee TODAY and urge them to strip the “Linsky language” from the final version of the budget, should it pass it will create a legal quagmire for licensed MA gun owners.
The committee members are:
Budget Conference Committee
House:
- Representative Jeffrey Sánchez, 617-722-2990 Chair House Ways & Means Committee – State House Room 243
- Representative Stephen Kulik, 617-722-2380 Vice Chair House Ways & Means Committee – State House Room 238
- Representative Todd Smola, 617-722-2100 Ranking Minority House Ways & Means Committee – State House Room 124
Senate:
- Senator Karen Spilka, 617-722-1640 Chair Senate Ways & Means Committee – State House Room 212
- Senator Sal N. DiDomenico, 617-722-1650 Vice Chair Senate Way & Means Committee – State House Room 208
- Senator Vinny deMacedo, 617-722-1330 Ranking Minority Senate Ways & Means Committee – State House Room 313C
10/27 Update. Please continue calling your legislators about stripping the Linsky language from the house budget, H.3979. (see last post for more info)
This is going to come down to which version gets passed and we need to do everything we can to ensure it’s not the house/Linsky version. Now that the house and senate have each followed procedure and approved the same bill it will go to conference committee. They will approve the final version between the two and send it to Governor Baker to be signed. He is going to sign whatever comes out of committee.
We should know who is going to be on the conference committee later today and we will need to make phone calls once we do.
10/26/17
GOAL has learned that the MA House of Representatives engrossed a new budget bill during informal session today, which includes the Linsky amendment regarding modification of firearms. The language is in two parts.
The first section (Section 18), copied below, would make any basic modification and or maintenance of a firearm illegal, including required maintenance like lubrication of moving parts.
Section 131R. Whoever possesses, owns or offers for sale any device which attaches to a rifle, shotgun or firearm, except a magazine, that is designed to increase the rate of discharge of the rifle, shotgun or firearm or whoever modifies any rifle, shotgun or firearm with the intent to increase its rate of discharge, shall be punished by imprisonment in the state prison by not less than 3 nor more than 20 years.
The second section (Section 51) is equally egregious in that it gives EOPPS regulatory authority over all maintenance and enhancement of rifles, shotguns, and firearms. Can you imagine what AG Healey would do should EOPPS be granted this kind of authority? See language pasted below.
The Secretary of Public Safety shall promulgate regulations by January 1, 2018 concerning the allowability of maintenance and enhancement of rifles, shotguns and firearms consistent with the intent of this section.
We are being told that Governor Baker will sign this into law, by Tuesday, October 31, 2017. Please take action immediately
Take Action
Please call your state representative and senator immediately! Let them know that this amendment must be stripped from the budget bill. This language is so broad and open to interpretation and abuse that it will cause a legal quagmire for licensed gun owners in Massachusetts.
You can call the State House operator at 617-722-2000 and ask for your state representative and/or senator, or you can look up their direct phone number by clicking here.
