Gun Safety Training and Permit Bill Awaits House Action in January

In the January session of the General Assembly, the Senate is going to have to stand up and demand that their gun bills be passed through the Senate relatively un-amended, just like the House Gun Bills were passed through the Senate without substantial amendment, or force House Democrats to vote them down and suffer the wrath of the Democratic primary voter.

We saw what happened with Senate Bill 6, the large capacity magazine ban, which was passed by the Senate and then was gutted by the House with an amendment changing the entire structure of the bill. The amended bill was then sent back to the Senate. The Senate should amend the bill again, and restore the bill as passed by the Senate, and send it back to the House. If certain legislators think the original Senate Bill would make their guns illegal, then they should vote no and explain why they chose their gun over your gun safety.

The House also has to act on Senate Bill 3. SB3 would add Delaware to a growing list of states that require their residents to complete firearm training and obtain a permit before purchasing a handgun – a measure proven to reduce both homicide and suicide in other states. Those already permitted to carry a concealed deadly weapon by the State of Delaware would be exempted from that requirement because they are already required to complete a firearm training course. 

Strong permit laws also have been found to help prevent gun trafficking and the diversion of guns to criminals. States with strong permit laws are associated with 76% lower rates of guns exported to criminals.   A similar permit law passed in Connecticut in 1995 has been associated with a 40% reduction in that state’s firearm homicide rate and a 15% decrease in its firearm suicide rate in its first decade, while a 2018 study of 80 large urban counties found permit laws were associated with an 11% decrease in firearm homicides. 

To date, at least 14 other states and the District of Columbia have adopted some form of firearm  permitting law, including New York, New Jersey and Maryland. A recent survey found that 74% of registered Delaware voters support gun permit policies, regardless of geography, party affiliation or gun ownership. 

Senator Elizabeth “Tizzy” Lockman: “Through countless polls and election cycles, Delawareans have been clear in their support for measures that reduce gun violence and address the wave of mass shootings gripping our nation. A recent survey found that 74% of registered voters – Democrats and Republicans – support measures like Senate Bill 3, legislation that would add Delaware to a growing list of states that require their residents to complete firearm training and obtain a permit before purchasing a handgun, a measure proven to reduce both homicide and suicide in other states.

Democrats from across Delaware also came together virtually last [month] to ratify a party platform that includes several common-sense gun safety measures that respect the rights of law-abiding and responsible gun owners. That includes passing legislation to regulate ghost guns, which we did this week. It includes disarming domestic abusers, which we also did this week. It includes reducing firearm magazine capacity, which the Senate voted to do in April.

And it includes passing a permit-to-purchase law in Delaware that will reduce gun trafficking and prevent the diversion of legally purchased handguns to criminals. The data is clear: permit to purchase laws save lives in every state where they’ve been enacted. Thank you to the Delaware Democratic Party for putting this legislation at the center of our platform and thank you to all of the voters who are voicing your support for Senate Bill 3. I hope to see this potentially life-saving legislation scheduled for a vote in the House very soon.”

Senate Bill 3 Sponsors	Yes Votes	No Votes
Lockman, Townsend, Pinkney, Sturgeon, Gay, S.McBride, Sokola	Senate Passed 13-8. Brown Gay Hansen Lockman Mantzavinos Paradee Pinkney Poore S.McBride Sokola Sturgeon Townsend Walsh	Bonini Ennis Hocker Lawson Lopez Pettyjohn Richardson Wilson
Dorsey Walker, Longhurst, Baumbach, Bentz, Brady, Kowalko, Lynn, Minor-Brown, Morrison
Current Status —	Sent to the House for it consideration