Washington Gun Rights Threatened by Radical Ballot Measure
For more information, visit www.initiative1639.org.
Once again a serious threat to citizens’ Second Amendment rights is coming from the Left Coast. If you live in Washington State, you need to educate yourself on Initiative 1639 (I-1639), a THIRTY-page gun control measure on the November ballot. This is one of the most restrictive and radical gun measures ever put on a State ballot. Your vote is needed to block I-1639 from becoming law.
This measure basically defines virtually ALL self-loading long guns as “assault rifles”. This would even include popular .22 LR rimfire rifles such as the Ruger 10/22, Marlin 60, and Remington 597. In addition, I-1639 imposes draconian gun storage requirements, imposes new taxes on gun ownership, creates a far-reaching gun registry, and mandates annual “verification” of gun owners. LEARN MORE HERE*.
“Law enforcement professionals recognize the extreme nature of I-1639,” said Alan Gottlieb, chairman of the Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms. “Not only does the initiative discriminate against gun owners, it classifies common recreational firearms as ‘semiautomatic assault rifles’ and requires gun buyers to surrender their medical privacy in order to exercise a constitutionally-protected right.” I-1639 is being pushed by the Seattle-based Alliance for Gun Responsibility, an extreme anti-gun advocacy group funded by billionaire dollars.
Not just organized gun rights groups are opposing I-1639. In fact many Washington State law enforcement organizations have opposed this far-reaching anti-gun measure.
The Washington State Sheriffs Association (WSSA), Washington Council of Police & Sheriffs (WACOPS) and Washington State Law Enforcement Firearms Instructors Association (WSLEFIA) all oppose I-1639.
The WSLEFIA stated: “Initiative 1639 is being promoted as a public safety measure; those actually working law enforcement know that IT WILL DO NOTHING TO STOP A SINGLE CRIME. This initiative has nothing to do with ‘assault weapons’ and is directed only at our good citizens who already pass multiple background checks before owning a firearm. I-1639 is an attack on civil rights and is an attempt to marginalize all firearm owners, including law enforcement officers. I-1639 will impair public safety, embolden criminals and impose burdensome restrictions on our most law-abiding citizens.”
Photo Courtesy NRA-ILA which opposes I-1639. See Initiative1639.org.
WACOPS Executive Director Teresa Taylor added, “WACOPS believe that Initiative 1639 contains provisions that are in clear violation of both state and federal individual constitutional rights, which, as law enforcement, officers, WACOPS members are sworn to uphold. In addition to the constitutional issues, this 30-page initiative, if passed, would impose significant restrictions on a citizen’s ability to possess and access commonly-owned firearms for lawful self-defense.”
* Furthermore, according to the NRA: “The Washington Department of Licensing (DOL) and law enforcement agencies are directed to collect and store information on purchases and transfers of guns under this Initiative, without limits on how this information may be used. Besides putting sensitive personal data at risk, this opens the door to a government registry of guns and gun owners. The Initiative also directs law enforcement agencies and the DOL to develop a process to ‘verify, on an annual or more frequent basis’, that both handgun and SAR owners continue to be eligible to possess any firearm under state and federal law. It authorizes law enforcement to ‘take steps to ensure’ that anyone who fails the verification process no longer possesses guns. The Initiative doesn’t rule out seizure and confiscation of firearms as means of enforcing this directive.”
