Democratic lawmakers are seeking further restrictions on ammunition sales after submitting the “Stop Online Ammunition Sales Act of 2023” in late January, which would block online sales of ammunition and issue new guidance for brick-and-mortar stores.
The bill, H.R. 584, would require ammunition dealers to receive updated licenses and confirm the identity of any customer who attempts to purchase ammunition, further saying that online sales will be blocked and bulk purchases must be reported. Democratic New Jersey Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman, a lawmaker backed by Michael Bloomberg’s anti-gun group Everytown for Gun Safety, introduced the bill alongside 23 House Democrats who co-signed the legislation. (RELATED: ‘Nonnegotiable’: Florida Officials Unveil Bill That Would Ban Tracking Of Firearm And Ammunition Purchases)
“Day in and day out men and women lose their lives at the hands of gun violence and the only response from Republicans has been moments of silence and continued inaction. Gun safety policies shouldn’t have to wait for tragedies like Las Vegas, Colorado Springs and Uvalde to be considered; we also owe it to mothers, fathers and siblings burying family members every day in Trenton, Plainfield and other cities across America,” Watson Coleman said in a release.
Under the bill’s bulk reporting requirement, any retailer who sells over 1,000 rounds to a single customer must report the purchase, according to the legislation.
Fenix Ammunition, a small, family-owned company that manufactures ammunition in the United States, told the Daily Caller News Foundation that they were not surprised that “our lawmakers would set their sights on ammunition.”
As legislators, it is not our job to mourn. It is our job to take ACTION to build a better, brighter, safer America.
I just reintroduced my Stop Online Ammunition Sales Act because I will not stand idly by in the face of tragedy.https://t.co/uJvwFIx0qP
— Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman (@RepBonnie) January 26, 2023
“We’re confident that any efforts to restrict ammunition sales at the Federal level will be struck down in the post-Bruen era, and we’re doing everything we can to fundraise efforts to challenge existing restriction in places like California and New York,” Fenix Ammunition CEO Justin Nazaroff told the DCNF. “Gun control groups have already tried to blame ammunition retailers for mass shootings, with disastrous results for themselves and their clients in Colorado where the plaintiffs were forced to pay the legal fees of an online ammo reseller who they sued after the Colorado movie theater shooting.”
“The Brady Campaign stuck their clients with a $111,000 bill and forced them into personal bankruptcy as a result of their lawsuit, and we can only hope that trend continues,” Nazaroff added.
Watson Coleman did not respond to the DCNF’s request for comment.
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