GOAL has posted this alert:
Gun Owners' Action League
January 26, 2009
Bill to Criminalize Expired Licenses and Photograph all Lawfully Owned Firearms
Gun Owners' Action League has received an advance copy of a piece of new legislation that all Massachusetts gun owners should be alerted to. Representative William Lantigua of Lawrence has filed legislation to criminalize the possession of a rifle, shotgun or handgun with an expired license. Currently under Massachusetts law, a citizen who is found to be in possession under an expired Firearm Identification Card (FID) or License to Carry (LTC) is exempt from the criminal penalties found in chapter 269 and is only subject to a civil fine.
This exemption has been maintained in good part because of the state's abysmal record in renewing FIDs and LTCs. In some cases in recent history it has taken over a year to process a renewal when the law demands that the licensing authority accomplish this task in 40 days. Several times throughout the last decades, GOAL has had to have legislation passed to grant grace periods because of the state's inability to comply with its own laws in regards to renewing FIDs and LTCs. Shortly after passing the Gun Control Act of 1998 (Chapter 180) the state was so far behind in processing renewals that it used a regulatory authority to temporarily issue a schedule pushing some off for over a year.
* 1974 *Chapter 649 provides a 90 day grace period beyond the expiration date of the License to Carry Firearms.
* 1976 *Chapter 34 provided the first temporary extension of the grace period on a License to Carry to 170 days beyond its expiration.
* 1981 *Chapter 411 was emergency legislation to temporarily extend the grace period for a License to Carry to 180 days.
* 2004 *Chapter 150 brought several much needed reforms. These included a review board for misdemeanor offenses, a 6 year License to Carry and Firearms Identification Card, a 90 day grace period, and more.
The third section of the bill would require all lawful gun owners to supply the licensing authority with photographs of all the rifles, shotguns and handguns they own.
"The intent of this bill is the complete opposite direction where we need to take this state in regard to respecting citizens rights, said Jim Wallace, Executive Director of GOAL. "It is a clear representation of the social immaturity towards firearm that this state has developed. To force a corrupt and unaccountable licensing system on lawful citizens who wish to exercise their civil rights and then through them in jail for the government's failures is simply an inexcusable policy! If a piece of legislation ever exemplified the need for the REAL REFORMS and REAL RESULTS in the Civil Rights and Public Safety Act, this would certainly be one of them."
This bill currently has no number or official title to date. This will certainly be a piece of legislation that our members will want to keep on their legislative radar. GOAL will alert our members on any movement of this bill.
Bill Language
(No title or number has been assigned to date.)
SECTION 1. Section 129B of chapter 140 of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2006 Official Edition, is hereby amended by striking out the words "civil fine of not less than $500 nor more than $5,000" in lines 224 and 225 and inserting in place thereof the following:- fine of not less than $5,000 nor more than $10,000 of by imprisonment in a jail for not less than 6 months nor more than 1 year or by both such fine and imprisonment.
SECTION 2. Section 131 of chapter 140 of the General Laws, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out the words "civil fine of not less than $500 nor more than $5,000" in lines 308 and 309 and inserting in place thereof the following:- fine of not less than $5,000 nor more than $10,000 of by imprisonment in a jail for not less than 6 months nor more than 1 year or by both such fine and imprisonment.
SECTION 3. Said chapter 140 is hereby further amended by inserting after section 131 the following section:-
Section 131 ¼ . Any application for the renewal of a firearm identification card or a license to carry firearms shall be accompanied by a photograph of the said number of the weapon, or weapons, covered thereunder.
Angela/GOAL
Gun Owners' Action League
Gun Owners' Action League
January 26, 2009
Bill to Criminalize Expired Licenses and Photograph all Lawfully Owned Firearms
Gun Owners' Action League has received an advance copy of a piece of new legislation that all Massachusetts gun owners should be alerted to. Representative William Lantigua of Lawrence has filed legislation to criminalize the possession of a rifle, shotgun or handgun with an expired license. Currently under Massachusetts law, a citizen who is found to be in possession under an expired Firearm Identification Card (FID) or License to Carry (LTC) is exempt from the criminal penalties found in chapter 269 and is only subject to a civil fine.
This exemption has been maintained in good part because of the state's abysmal record in renewing FIDs and LTCs. In some cases in recent history it has taken over a year to process a renewal when the law demands that the licensing authority accomplish this task in 40 days. Several times throughout the last decades, GOAL has had to have legislation passed to grant grace periods because of the state's inability to comply with its own laws in regards to renewing FIDs and LTCs. Shortly after passing the Gun Control Act of 1998 (Chapter 180) the state was so far behind in processing renewals that it used a regulatory authority to temporarily issue a schedule pushing some off for over a year.
* 1974 *Chapter 649 provides a 90 day grace period beyond the expiration date of the License to Carry Firearms.
* 1976 *Chapter 34 provided the first temporary extension of the grace period on a License to Carry to 170 days beyond its expiration.
* 1981 *Chapter 411 was emergency legislation to temporarily extend the grace period for a License to Carry to 180 days.
* 2004 *Chapter 150 brought several much needed reforms. These included a review board for misdemeanor offenses, a 6 year License to Carry and Firearms Identification Card, a 90 day grace period, and more.
The third section of the bill would require all lawful gun owners to supply the licensing authority with photographs of all the rifles, shotguns and handguns they own.
"The intent of this bill is the complete opposite direction where we need to take this state in regard to respecting citizens rights, said Jim Wallace, Executive Director of GOAL. "It is a clear representation of the social immaturity towards firearm that this state has developed. To force a corrupt and unaccountable licensing system on lawful citizens who wish to exercise their civil rights and then through them in jail for the government's failures is simply an inexcusable policy! If a piece of legislation ever exemplified the need for the REAL REFORMS and REAL RESULTS in the Civil Rights and Public Safety Act, this would certainly be one of them."
This bill currently has no number or official title to date. This will certainly be a piece of legislation that our members will want to keep on their legislative radar. GOAL will alert our members on any movement of this bill.
Bill Language
(No title or number has been assigned to date.)
SECTION 1. Section 129B of chapter 140 of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2006 Official Edition, is hereby amended by striking out the words "civil fine of not less than $500 nor more than $5,000" in lines 224 and 225 and inserting in place thereof the following:- fine of not less than $5,000 nor more than $10,000 of by imprisonment in a jail for not less than 6 months nor more than 1 year or by both such fine and imprisonment.
SECTION 2. Section 131 of chapter 140 of the General Laws, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out the words "civil fine of not less than $500 nor more than $5,000" in lines 308 and 309 and inserting in place thereof the following:- fine of not less than $5,000 nor more than $10,000 of by imprisonment in a jail for not less than 6 months nor more than 1 year or by both such fine and imprisonment.
SECTION 3. Said chapter 140 is hereby further amended by inserting after section 131 the following section:-
Section 131 ¼ . Any application for the renewal of a firearm identification card or a license to carry firearms shall be accompanied by a photograph of the said number of the weapon, or weapons, covered thereunder.
Angela/GOAL
Gun Owners' Action League
