COMMENTARIES AND LETTERS ARE THE OPINION OF THE WRITERS, NOT NECESSARILY THAT OF NYSCC.
YOU THINK "TERRORISM" HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH YOUR GUN RIGHTS, AS AN AMERICAN? THINK AGAIN
If the leaves are starting to turn, it’s not just time to circle opening days on your calendar. The kiddos are on the yellow bus means Congress is back in session. My purpose in writing is to prep you for the upcoming NYS legislative session – a session that is about to contain some wild variables – and to do so with a very serious bill actively in progress in Congress.
Stats in NYS are not unlike stats in Congress. During the 116th Congress (2019-221) a total of 16,601 bills were introduced, though only 344 (2%) were passed (source: GovTrack.us). NYS sees over 10,000 bills introduced each year, which actually exceeds Congress (see: NYOpenGovernment.com).
With such low odds of passage, why am I so concerned about H.R.350/SB963, “The Domestic Terrorism Prevention Act of 2021?” What is it that I see in this bill that signals Congress could actually pass this bill to empower the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) to investigate and prosecute Americans as “domestic terrorists,” as a chargeable, federal crime? And what does H.R.350/SB963 have to do with gun ownership?
1. Look for bills with a “same as.” Whether federal or state, a bill must pass both houses to advance to a President/Governor for signature. In general, bills are first introduced in a house and that is where it dies. It is generally much harder to get a bill introduced in the senate. Even when it does appear in the senate, the language doesn’t always match. Where you see the “same as” of a bill being introduced in both a house + the sente with the same text, pay attention.
2. Look for bills with active co-sponsors. Go to Congress.gov and punch in H.R.350. Click on the Co-Sponsors tab. This is a classic lesson in “how to” get a bill passed. Introduced on January 19, 2021 and steadily, each and every month, new cosponsors.
3. Look for bills with activity. Bills have to clear at least one, if not more than one, committee. In the case of H.R.350, it’s currently parked in multiple committees. Stalled is the only bit of good news on this bill.
4. Look for bills with bi-partisan support. The ratio for H.R.350 is 201 Dems + 3 Reps. My only note here is that it’s not zero.
5. Look for bills where leadership lends its name. In the case of the “same as” in S.B.963, it’s U.S. Senator Dick Durbin at the helm. That’s problematic. He’s the U.S. Senate Majority Whip, a long-standing incumbent from Illinois, well entwined and able to move bills when he wants to. There may only be three U.S. Senators on the bill, but he’s really all you need to make it happen.
So why, if that’s my concern metric, am I paying any attention to U.S. Senator Marco Rubio’s S.183, “The Terror Intelligence Improvement Act?” Because it’s the bill that would strip gun ownership and purchasing rights if an American is “under investigation” for being a terrorist, including, retroactively, at any time in the past ten years. It matters not to me that Senator Rubio is the only one on the bill. His language illustrates yet another way to go after our fundamental rights. And it could well get cut-and-paste into a different bill or as an amendment to H.R.350/S.B.963 because, well, that, too.
H.R.350/S.B.963 is troublesome on its own, but, when you combine it with S.B.183, you see how difficult our lives could become as activists and as gun owners.
Keep an eye on both, and, if you’re so inclined, #MakeTheCall to state your opposition. Find out more on my website at www.2AMPatriot.com/4AM. Find the bills at www.Congress.gov.
PALOMA A. CAPANNA, ATTORNEY & POLICY ANALYST, WWW.2AMPATRIOT.COM
