Washington regulates the purchase and transfer of firearms and ammunition, as well as the conduct of firearm dealers. State law does not establish any maximum number of firearms or ammunition a dealer may deliver within a specific time period.
A "dealer" is a person engaged in the business of selling firearms at wholesale or retail who has, or is required to have, a federal firearms license. A person who does not have, and is not required to have, a federal firearms license, is not a dealer if that person makes only occasional sales, exchanges, or purchases of firearms for the enhancement of a personal collection or for a hobby, or sells all or part of his or her personal collection of firearms.
Federal law provides that no person may engage in the business of importing, manufacturing, or dealing in firearms, or importing or manufacturing ammunition, until the person has filed an application with and received a license from the Attorney General of the United States.
Firearm dealers are prohibited from delivering more than one firearm, or more than 100 rounds of .50 caliber ammunition or more than 1,000 rounds of any other caliber of ammunition, to a purchaser or transferee within any 30-day period.?
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These restrictions are subject to exceptions and do not apply to delivery of firearms or ammunition to:? (1) qualifying law enforcement agencies; (2) qualifying correctional facilities; (3) qualifying private security companies; (4) qualifying peace officers obtaining firearms or ammunition for law enforcement purposes; (5) the criminal justice training commission; (6) qualifying firearm dealers and importers obtaining firearms or ammunition for resale; (7) qualifying persons engaged in transfers exempt from background check requirements under state law; (8) qualifying firearm or ammunition exchanges within 30 days of sale; (9) the return of any firearm or ammunition to its owner; (10) receipt of a firearm or ammunition by operation of law upon the death of the former owner; (11) private party transactions to relinquish all firearms or ammunition pursuant to state law or court order; (12) certain private party transactions involving the transfer of a deceased person's firearms or ammunition; and (13) licensed collectors with a current certificate of eligibility issued by the United States Department of Justice.
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Compliance with delivery limitations is a condition of firearm dealer licensure.? Violations are punishable by forfeiture of a dealer's license.
Civil infraction and criminal penalties are removed.? State law governing firearm dealers is modified to provide that no dealer may deliver firearms or ammunition in excess of established limits.? Compliance with firearm and ammunition delivery limits is made a condition of firearm dealer licensure and violations are punishable by forfeiture of a dealer's license.? Exceptions are specified to apply to the delivery of firearms or ammunition to any listed entity or individual.? Ammunition is expressly added to listed exceptions.
(In support) This bill is about trying to address public safety and illegal activity, gun violence in our communities, and crime scenes with hundreds of shell casings.? Firearms bought in bulk are twice as likely to become ghost guns and 64 percent more likely to be used in crime.? Bulk purchasing of firearms is clearly linked to firearms trafficking, and states that have enacted similar measures have seen a 50 percent reduction in firearm trafficking.? This bill will reduce the flow of illegal firearms in the state, help law enforcement prevent harm, and cut off the supply of weapons and ammo flowing into the black market.
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Limiting bulk sales would make it more difficult for potential shooters to accumulate the resources needed for a mass shooting.? In 2017 the Las Vegas shooter shot over 1,000 rounds of ammunition into a crowd, injuring almost 900 people in less than 10 minutes.? The shooter began stockpiling weapons about a year prior to the shooting and bought most of the weapons and ammunition in bulk.? Other research has found multiple cases in which mass shooters purchased large amounts of guns and ammunition before committing their crimes.?
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There are currently no limits on the number of guns or the rounds of ammunition that someone is allowed to purchase.? Ordinary people are not buying 12 guns or 12,000 rounds of ammunition per year.? One firearm and 1,000 rounds of ammunition is sufficient to purchase at one time unless an exception applies.
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Students have easy access to firearms and ammunition, and it is impossible to focus on learning about one's constitutional rights when one's life is constantly threatened.? Generation Z has grown up in a world where gun violence is the status quo.?
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(Opposed)?Restricting the purchase of ammunition in any amount infringes on and impairs the constitutional right to keep and bear arms.? Effective self-defense under stress requires practice with ample ammunition.? There are no similar restrictions on how often one can vote, speak freely, or practice religion.? This bill is the most restrictive form of this type of law in the country.? Imposing more limitations on law-abiding citizens who have already undergone fingerprinting and background checks, and waived their medical privacy rights, is bad faith.? This bill will only result in an irresponsible waste of taxpayer dollars in inevitable litigation.?
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The intent behind this bill may be honorable, but the results are going to be disastrous.? The Legislature began pushing restrictive gun control measures in 2014 and, since then, the number of homicides has doubled and, in some places like Seattle, it has tripled. ?Chicago has one of the most draconian anti-gun laws in the nation, and yet it has some of the worst gun-related violent crimes and homicides in the world because criminals simply steal their firearms or source their ammunition across state lines. ?Criminals do not care about ineffective and illogical laws like this one.? Most gun violence is committed by individuals who cannot legally own a gun.?
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There are no exceptions in the bill for CPL holders who, as a group, commit virtually no crimes.? There are no exceptions for competitive shooting, which can require frequent practice and the use of several thousand rounds per month before an important match.? There are no exceptions for firearm instructors, which will hinder their ability to provide classes to those who want to learn how to safely protect themselves with firearms.? Basic firearm training can use well over a thousand rounds and needs sufficient firearms to teach the use of various action types and calibers.? If an instructor receives a grant, it will typically require that all firearms be purchased at one time.? This bill was drafted without input from the shooting community.
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The restrictions in this bill have no correlation to reducing gun violence, and no reliable data has been offered to suggest that this bill will improve public safety.? Not a single tragedy cited by gun control activists would have been prevented by this law.?
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Almost half of all misdemeanors are dismissed in Washington, and a very high percentage of felony charges are reduced, dropped, or dismissed.? Washington does not have a gun problem; it has a problem with coddling criminals.
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This bill is unduly burdensome on firearm dealers, who must already comply with many firearm dealership requirements implemented in recent years.? Firearm dealers are good at spotting dubious buyers and straw purchasing is already illegal.
(In support) Representative Darya Farivar, prime sponsor; Ann-Marie Parsons; Jane Wiess; Mahiki Malldi; Niko Battle; Ann Madsen, Moms Demand Action; and Jess Warner.
More than 20 persons signed in. Please contact the House Public Records Office at https://leg.wa.gov/public-records-requests/ or call (360) 786-0926.