The Vermont House approved sweeping gun legislation Friday evening that would mandate universal background checks, raise the minimum age for firearm purchases to 21, and ban bump stocks and high-capacity magazines.
The bill, S.55, was hotly contested in a debate that began Friday at 9:30 a.m. and lasted well into the evening, with one break for a late lunch. A final 85-59 vote on the bill took place just before 7:30 p.m.
“The policies in this bill will keep firearms away from those who intend harm and reduce the lethality of firearms that may be misused,” said Rep. Martin LaLonde (D-South Burlington), who spent much of the day responding to questions and criticism from the bill’s opponents.
House Republicans vocally opposed much of the bill, arguing that it would be ineffective, unconstitutional, unduly burdensome on law-abiding Vermonters or some combination of the three.
“We are passing legislation today that does nothing, because it’s going to make a few people feel good,” said Rep. Patrick Brennan (R-Colchester).
Brennan’s criticism of the legislation hinged on enforceability and practicality. He said a provision to ban bump stocks, which increase the firing rate of semi-automatic rifles, wasn’t practical.
“I am concerned that by a stroke of the pen here we are … immediately creating criminals,” he said. “And should they hold onto it, should they throw it away, should they drop it off at the local law enforcement office?”
Brennan and other Republicans voiced opposition to limits on magazine capacity, universal background checks and raising the purchasing age, all on the grounds that the proposals would be easy for criminals to overcome.
Rep. Anne Donahue (R-Northfield) argued that the age increase amounted to discrimination. She suggested it might not be so politically appealing to the House in other forms.
“How many people in this body would support the idea that to avoid an impulsive decision that might be regretted later, a woman who was 18 or 19 or 20 should be required to get some counseling before deciding to have an abortion?” Donahue asked.
As debate wore into the evening, Rep. Valerie Stuart (D-Brattleboro) expressed frustration with questions posed by the bill’s opponents. (LaLonde said some of Brennan’s hypotheticals “stretch credibility.”) Stuart told the story of her daughter’s friend, whom she described as a beautiful, 10th-grade athlete, filled with promise but struggling with mental health issues.
“My first year [at the Statehouse], in January, I got a call,” she said. It was about her daughter’s friend.
“She blew her head off in her basement while her sister and her boyfriend were upstairs,” Stuart said, her voice breaking with emotion. “And her mother had to see the helicopter turn around after it took off from Brattleboro Memorial Hospital, because this beautiful young woman … had blown off her head.”
Stuart apologized in advanced for the graphic story, but her message was intended to stir action. “Let’s cut to the chase,” she said. “Let’s get something positive done.”
Just before the final vote of the night, Minority Leader Don Turner (R-Milton) said he supported taking action to reduce gun violence but did not support the legislation at hand.
“I don’t think this bill is going to change one thing,” he said. “I hope it does.”
Votes on the bill were split up and taken by roll call. House members voted:
- 119 to 25 to ban bump stocks
- 88 to 56 to raise the minimum gun purchasing age to 21
- 83 to 61 to mandate background checks on all gun purchases
- 79 to 66 to ban the sale of ammunition magazines that hold more than 10 rounds
- 85 to 59 to advance the entire bill
The House is set to debate the bill again next week, consider more amendments and vote on final passage. Then the legislation would return to the Senate, which passed a more limited version earlier this month, without magazine capacity limits or the bump stock ban. Gov. Phil Scott, a Republican, has expressed support for elements of the bill.
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Very sad story about about Representative Stuarts family friend, sorry that anyone needs to go through that. I wonder however, which of the components of todays bill would have prevented that tragedy.
I am also dismayed that two 18 year olds can get married, live on there own, have a child and not be able to purchase a firearm for their own protection. VT Senate and Governor Scott, you still have a chance to slow down this runaway train.
Is there any evidence….ANYWHERE….that proves that any of these measures would have prevented a single one of the mass shootings from the last decade? After all, it is those mass shootings that prompted these laws right? So the logical person would say, “If there’s no evidence…but we’re moving forwards anyways…then what’s the real reason we’re pushing more gun control laws?”
@Bob Frazier, I did some sleuthing, it took me a while but I narrowed it down to the most likely option. Stuarts said it happened in her first year at the Statehouse, and I found this news article which matches the location (Brattleboro) and the timeframe. “…the death of Leah Short, 16, a Brattleboro Union High School sophomore who shot herself with a type of gun that has not been specified by police.” (Source: https://www.sevendaysvt.com/vermont/aiming…) I’m still trying to look for more info, but I can’t find much more than this.
There are two possible scenarios that I can think of. Either she bought the gun herself, (which at 16 you could do), or there was a gun in the house that she gained access to. If it was the first scenario, then this bill would have helped her, because she wouldn’t have been able to buy one. But if it was the second scenario, then this bill would not have helped her, as she would have obtained the gun in her own house, and this bill isn’t regulating guns within a family
Vermont is lost. Time to leave.
Gone. No evidence for any of this. Gun homicide is at a historic low. Homicide is, too. Violent crime is at a historic low. Even mass shootings are at a historic low.
http://wmbriggs.com/post/17703/
The age raising will only result in worse domestic violence in young couples.
Mag limits do nothing, reloads take under a second with little practice.
If it passes and is signed, I will leave the state that I call home.
I find that s.55 is a badly written piece of legislation that will not solve the problem of young men acting out in a violent fashion. The amendments added by the House do nothing to protect children or the general population from the bad actors in our society. These measures only restrict honest law abiding citizens. Criminals can and will ignore these laws. We as a society must find the root cause of the violence. If we do not solve this puzzle, no law prohibiting any device or tool will serve to eliminate future tragedy. I note that the Texas Bomber was a young man who shopped at Home Depot for his bomb making supplies.This bill if passed, will do nothing to restrict criminals such as the felon who recently opened fire on the streets of Burlington. This Felon was prohibited under current law from having a firearm. Criminals do not abide by firearms laws. I would say the first step might be taking these young men off of prescription medications that can cause erratic behavior. I ask the Senate to reject the amendments as written. This Voter asks the Governor to refuse to sign this bill.
Well what do you expect when there is so many liberal out of staters under the golden dome in Montpelier. They moved here to change Vermont into the same kind of liberal state they left. There is a lot of gun owners in Vermont, Come election time hopefully we can get in some REAL VERMONTERS in office. Can’t buy a gun till you are 21 BUT you are considered an ADULT at 18, you have to register at 18 for selective service, hell you can buy a bar at 18 just can’t drink in it. you can get a drivers license at 15, 16 and a senior license at 18.. Liberals trying to run our lives, they think we are too dumb to know how to run our own lives.. Bet you every one of the liberals hates guns and that we should too. They want us to think like they do.. not in my life time…Gov Scott grow a pair and stop this NOW !!!
When I began studying constitutional law & common law, I was taught the difference between a republic, as this country and state was founded & a democracy, as this country has been perverted into. It was said that a democracy is the tyranny of 51% of the country believing they can strip the rights from the other 49%, mostly with statutes and ordinances. I obey the laws of the constitutional republic of the united states and nothing more.
Any government, or any corporate entity pretending to be a government, that believes it can circumvent the constitution at will, is long past it’s removal date.
and now once laws like this have no effect they’ll say it’s because they’re not strict enough…. and it’ll just go around and around until they’re totally banned
and now when this does nothing they’ll say it’s because it’s not strict enough. then it’ll go round and round like that until guns are totally banned. Cuomo got his way with the safe act in ny several years ago… there were no incidents before or since, but now it needs to be stricter?
People will only be policed as much as they agree to be, otherwise they just go underground and do what their Constitution portects anyway. We now have a clearly repressive Legislature that is ruling against the sovereignty of the people. Vermont lawmakers support the Clinton theft of Bernie donor funds taken by Hillary. They don’t care about Seth Rich’es murder, or Shawn Lukas, or Attorney Whisenant’s. There is level of complicity in Vermont’s Federal officials who express, “full faith and confidence in the 9/11 Commission Report which reflects their deep state connection. Who could have believed that this once honorable state would become bought and paid for by the globalists. There is a real purge needed in Vermont.
We have now learned that Hogg is not not a survivor, he wasn’t even at the school at the time of the event. He was at home with his FBI Father. He only fabricated the video of him being in the closet at school reporting on the event as it happened. This is entirely another false flag by the deep state to get gun confiscation. Unfortunately, we have 7daze pushing their antigun agenda. Advocacy press is no press at all, it is propaganda.