Gun control advocates
rallied at the statehouse on Wednesday, although there’s little evidence the
Legislature will consider gun-control bills this year.
The display of guns at the Statehouse – a place where firearms are otherwise
prohibited – was the idea of Essex Representative Linda Waite-Simpson,
the sponsor of a bill introduced this week that would ban ammunition
magazines of more than 10 rounds.
The types of weapons that might be included in gun control proposals will be on display at the Vermont Statehouse on Friday. The idea behind the show-and-tell is to give lawmakers what they need to know about firearms to have an informed debate on the issue.
Over the past month several Vermont communities have been calling for tighter gun
control. In the Upper Valley, petitioners are encouraging Vermont lawmakers to take up the issue. But the sponsor of
the only gun control bill on the table says there isn’t enough support to move
it forward.
Many Vermont lawmakers say gun control
legislation would be best handled at the federal level. But House Speaker Shap
Smith says
if a bill is debated in Montpelier, it needs to emerge first
from the Senate.
Mayors
from seven of the state’s eight cities held a news conference Tuesday
to outline proposals for the Legislature. Proposals included the call for a state law banning convicted felons from getting firearms, to match the current federal law.
The
right to bear arms is the law of the land. But after an unprecedented series of
shooting rampages last year, some state and local governments are now considering
bans on assault weapons on their streets.
Sen.
Patrick Leahy says he’ll support a renewal of a ban on the sale of semi-automatic
assault weapons. He says he’ll also back a plan to require background checks at
all gun shows.