S-16                  _______________________________________________

                                                   SENATE BILL NO. 5043

                        _______________________________________________

State of Washington                               51st Legislature                              1989 Regular Session

By Senators Madsen, Benitz, Barr, Conner, Metcalf, Rasmussen, Sutherland, Hansen, Smith, DeJarnatt, Nelson, von Reichbauer, Cantu and Warnke

Read first time 1/11/89 and referred to Committee on Law & Justice.

AN ACT Relating to increasing criminal penalties for illegal possession or use of machine guns; amending RCW 9.41.200 and 9.41.210; repealing RCW 9.41.190; and prescribing penalties.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

        Sec. 1.  Section 2, chapter 64, Laws of 1933 and RCW 9.41.200 are each amended to read as follows:

          For the purpose of RCW ((9.41.190)) 9.41.200 through 9.41.220 a machine gun is defined as any firearm or weapon known as a machine gun, mechanical rifle, submachine gun, and/or any other weapon, mechanism, or instrument not requiring that the trigger be pressed for each shot and having a reservoir clip, disc, drum, belt, or other separable mechanical device for storing, carrying, or supplying ammunition which can be loaded into such weapon, mechanism, or instrument, and fired therefrom at the rate of five or more shots per second.

        Sec. 2.  Section 3, chapter 64, Laws of 1933 and RCW 9.41.210 are each amended to read as follows:

It is unlawful for any person to manufacture, own, buy, sell, loan, furnish, transport, or have in possession or under control, any machine gun, or any part thereof specifically for the use, assembling, or repairing of any machine gun.  This section does not apply to:

(1) Any peace officer in the discharge of official duty;

(2) Any officer or member of the armed forces of the United States or the state of Washington in the discharge of official duty;

(3) Any person exempt from, licensed under, or registered under the National Firearms Act (26 U.S.C. section 5801 et seq.); or

(4) Any person or employee of such person, engaged in the production, manufacture, or testing of weapons or equipment to be used or purchased by the armed forces of the United States, and having a United States government industrial security clearance, when such machine gun is being used in connection with job-related duties; (5) Any person violating any of the provisions of ((RCW 9.41.190 through 9.41.220 shall be)) subsections (1) through (4) of this section is guilty of a class C felony under chapter 9A.20 RCW;

(6) Any person who commits a felony, other than a violation of subsections (1) through (4) of this section, while armed with a machine gun is guilty of a class B felony under chapter 9A.20 RCW.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 3.  Section 1, chapter 64, Laws of 1933, section 2, chapter 47, Laws of 1982 1st ex. sess. and RCW 9.41.190 are each repealed.