Legislature Returns to the State Capitol: BEWARE!

The California Senate and the Assembly have returned to the State Capitol today (Monday, August 5) and the final legislative push has begun.  Since this is an election year, the 2023-2024 Session will officially shut down on August 31, which means the Hefty Leftys will try to inflict as much damage on Californians as possible in the space of one month.

GOC is armed, informed and ready to go.

As we’ve reported throughout the year, there was a truckload of anti-Second Amendment bills introduced during this session – over 40 – and while there were some real bad boys in the mix, most of them were ridiculous in concept as they simply tried to solve a problem that did not exist. Even though a good number of them seemed relatively benign, they still chipped away at our rights, whether it was through protective orders, safety certificate changes, or prohibited persons.  GOC was laser focused, however, on making sure these insignificant nuisance bills didn’t become a plague on our rights. And – as we review the flood of proposals introduced this year, we can’t forget that we were instrumental – with YOUR HELP – in emasculating Senator Anthony Portantino’s SB 1160, which required annual firearm registration – across the board!  We can say this is a great send-off for Tony P, as his political career will come to a screeching halt since he is termed out in the California Senate and lost his bid for Congress.

Until the politicians go home at the end of the month, GOC will be waging war against those who seek to disarm us: check out GOC’s LEGISLATIVE ACTION CENTER for more information on how to join us in the remaining days of the legislative session :

AB 2917 | Zbur (D)

Assemblyman Rick Zbur’s AB 2917 will expand the conditions under which a Gun Violence Restraining Order can be issued to include highly subjective criteria such as what some might call “violent” speech.  This is problematic given that “violent speech” – although highly distasteful – is not by any means considered “objective.”  Like it or not, the 1^st Amendment protects freedom of speech, even if it is ugly.  Without question, the definition of verbal or written threats of violence is extremely subjective especially regarding the advancement of a “political agenda”.

AB 3064 |Maienschein (D)

AB 3064 is a “gotcha” bill that authorizes the Department of Justice to charge an annual fee on manufacturers who sell any firearm device listed on the Department’s safety roster. It forces businesses to pay a fee to the state for the simple purposes of having a firearm safety device on the market in California and if one of these devices falls off the certified list, responsible gun owners could be charged with non-compliance!

SB 53 | Portantino (D)

Senator Portantino’s SB 53 takes the issue of mandatory storage of firearms to a new level: it prohibits anyone from keeping a firearm in their home unless it is stored in a Department of Justice approved firearm safety device.  This is not a new issue; storage laws such as this have been introduced across the nation and have, in fact, been declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court of the United States in Heller v DC.  The California Legislature, however, continues to disregard this decision.  Unfortunately, pursuing policies of this nature will only force the State to relitigate something that has already been decided, which would be a costly endeavor borne yet again by the taxpayers of California.