With increased public support for stricter gun laws after the Parkland and Mukilteo school shootings, the Alliance for Gun Responsibility filed an initiative to the people to enact safety measures the legislature failed to follow through on.
Thurston County Leaguers participate in the March for Our Lives
The initiative incorporates several gun safety measures – all of which League positions support – under the umbrella of increasing public safety. Key provisions include:
- raising the minimum age for purchasing an assault-style weapon from 18 to 21
- requiring an enhanced background check, as required for handguns
- waiting period up to ten days
- disclosure of potential risks of guns in the home to be signed by buyer
- require gun dealers to make safe storage devices available to buyers
- Dangerous Access Prevention to prevent children and persons prohibited from gun ownership vfrom obtaining unsecured weapons. This provision has the highest potential for saving lives, especially suicides. Twenty-eight states now require safe storage
- mandatory safety training for assault-style weapon buyers
- mandatory reporting of lost and stolen weapons.
The initiative will be known as I-1639 and petitions will be available May 7. The state league board will consider endorsement of I-1639 at its May 18 meeting.
The League endorsed I-594 for universal background checks in 2014 and I-1490 for Extreme Risk Protection Orders in 2016. Both passed by wide margins. This initiative will require 260,000 valid signatures by July 7.
