SPOKANE, Wash. — Students Demand Action branch leader Gabriel Kelly says he's proud of the steps Washington's taking to make gun use safer.
"To see that Washington passed this with a bunch of other bills just really made me feel good," Kelly said. "And, like, felt that what we were doing matters."
One of the bills Kelly's talking about is House Bill 1240, which would ban what lawmakers define as "assault weapons."
"The Freeman shooting happened in Spokane, and then there are some shootings that happened in Olympia in the past five years," Kelly said. "And those were done, if I remember correctly, with assault rifles."
The bill passed the House and Senate with amendments. Friday, the House believed one of the Senate's proposed amendments goes outside of the scope of the bill.
"The Senate amendment creates exceptions to the bill for active duty military members receiving orders to move the Washington state and military retirees to Washington state. The speaker, therefore, finds and rules that the Senate amendment is impermissibly outside the scope of substitute House Bill 1240 as defined by its title," Speaker Pro Tempore Rep. Tina Orwall said.
The bill goes back to the Senate for additional review and action. Some who oppose the bill have criticized it as being unconstitutional.
State Senator Mike Padden (R-Spokane Valley) sits on the Senate Law & Justice Committee. He told KREM 2 he doesn't support the ban because he believes the guns themselves aren't the issue.
"If it could stop some of the violence that is caused by people who use guns, not by the guns themselves, I would support it," Padden said. "But, I don't believe it will help do that. In fact, I think it punishes law-abiding gun owners."
Kelly says the bill wasn't written to take away anyone's rights.
"You can still own a gun, you can still go on your hunting trips, you can still go to a shooting range, you can still do all these things," Kelly said. "But, at the end of the day, we're trying to make it safer for people."
State legislators will determine what's next for this bill. In the meantime, Kelly says the fight for a safer Washington and America continues.
"When you can see stuff happen on like a legislative level, it makes you want to keep going." Kelly said. "It makes you feel so incredibly powerful."
Other bills Kelly and Students Demand Action say are recent wins for gun safety are House Bill 1143 and Senate Bill 5078. HB1143 requires safety training and a 10-day waiting period for all firearm purchases. SB5078 is already in effect and increases accountability for manufacturers and dealers.
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