On Saturday, the 2021 Legislature adjourned without a single anti-gun bill moving forward, meaning a big victory for New Mexicans.
There were many extreme proposals introduced this legislative session, including an update to the previously passed and unenforceable “Red Flag” gun-grabbing law, a ban on homemade firearm components, mandatory storage legislation (which included provisions barring parents from teaching their kids how to shoot), and a revamp of the New Mexico Game and Fish Department, among others.
“I want to thank everyone who attended committee meetings over Zoom and made the emails and calls to their elected officials. The odds were very much stacked against us, but we did a great job showing that New Mexicans care about our Second-Amendment rights and will fight for them,” wrote New Mexico Shooting Sports Association president Zachary Fort in an email thanking supporters.
Rep. Stefani Lord (R-Bernalillo, Sandoval, and Santa Fe), who sponsored multiple pro-gun bills, wrote to her supporters, “On a positive note, we stopped all the gun bills, and I got one pro-gun bill through CPAC. Unfortunately, it died in Judiciary.”
The National Rifle Association Institute for Legislative Action (NRA-ILA) wrote, “The following gun control measures were defeated this session, which was especially challenging with the Capitol closed to the public and committee hearings held via Zoom instead of in-person. NRA-ILA appreciates all of you who participated in these meetings to voice your concerns about these bills, and who contacted your lawmakers in opposition to them. Warning: we expect to see many of these again in future legislative sessions!”
Here are the anti-gun bills that died this legislative session, according to NRA-ILA:
- HB 102 (creating a taxpayer-funded “firearm death review panel” to recommend future gun control measures) passed House Judiciary Committee and was tabled in House Appropriations Committee;
- HB 166 (ban on home-built firearms and 3D-printed gun components) passed House Consumer & Public Affairs Committee and was left pending in House Judiciary Committee;
- HB 193 (expansion of current red flag law) passed House Consumer & Public Affairs Committee, passed House Judiciary Committee, was pulled from the House Calendar and referred to House Rules Committee;
- HB 353 (requiring stolen gun checks by anyone receiving a firearm) was taken off House Consumer & Public Affairs Committee agenda and never heard;
- SB 224 (mandatory storage legislation) passed the Senate Health & Public Affairs Committee and was left pending in Senate Judiciary Committee; and
- SB 312 (“re-imagining” the mission of the NM Game & Fish Department) was tabled in Senate Conservation Committee.
Thanks to readers of the Piñon Post, we made Democrats’ extreme gun control bills go national, with many national outlets, including the Daily Wire, The Western Journal, The Blaze, The Post Millennial, among dozens of gun and hunting-focused publications. These efforts would not be possible without support from our loyal readers.
The Second Amendment victories this session come despite massive opposition from radical out-of-state gun-grabbing groups, such as the billionaire Mike Bloomberg-funded dark money group “Everytown.” Despite the anti-Second Amendment propaganda spun by these dark forces, every single anti-gun bill fell flat on its face.
Pingback: Every single anti-gun bill died this legislative session – SFWR
Pingback: Every single anti-gun bill died this legislative session – Santa Fe World Review
I am a former professor of constitutional law, now living in ABQ.
The pro-gun forces in NM — such as they are — better use this legislative hiatus to attack the current Red Flag law, instead of sitting on their hands and waiting until they can play defense again. The best offense, is a good offense!
Henry Mark Holzer
Professor Emeritus, Brooklyn Law School