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D.C.'s "Permitting Process" Shows Need for Congressional Intervention

Thursday, January 29, 2015

D.C.'s "Permitting Process" Shows Need for Congressional Intervention

The first information regarding how the District of Columbia permitting process is working in practice reached the public this week. To say that the city is dragging its feet would be putting it lightly.

According to the Washington Post, a total of 66 people have applied for carry permits, comprised of 34 residents and 32 nonresidents. Eight permits have been granted and 11 applicants have been denied, meaning that 47 applications are pending. While the average wait time for response has not been made public, the city began taking permit application of October 23, 2014. Under many concealed carry regimes, states are required to issue a permit within a certain, reasonable, time frame.

District officials have displayed a certain level of pride in how onerous their concealed carry permitting process is, noting that they modelled it after the constitutionally dubious schemes of New Jersey, New York, and Maryland. The District’s concealed carry instructions and application make clear that the city’s regime requires documentation “showing a special need for self-protection distinguishable from the general community as supported by evidence of specific threats or previous attacks which demonstrate a special danger to the applicant’s life.” Alternatively, the city might deign a person worthy of a permit if their “employment [is] of a type that requires the handling of large amounts of cash or other highly valuable objects that must be transported on your person,” or they need “to provide protection of a family member who is physically or mentally incapacitated to a point where that family member cannot act in defense of himself or herself, or his or her property.”

D.C. Council Chairman Phil Mendelson appears to have supreme faith in the D.C. local government’s ability to divine an individual’s private need for self-defense. Responding to comments that the current process is unconstitutional, made by the attorney whose case forced the city to establish its meager permitting process, Mendelson stated, “He must be thinking that everybody should be able to carry a firearm. There is nothing in the law that prevents anyone from applying. . . . The law was designed to weed out those who don’t have a need to carry.”

The Post piece goes on to quote D.C. Council member Kenyan R. McDuffie, who states, ”while I do not support the right of an individual to carry a hidden pistol, it appears that our recent legislation to regulate concealed guns is working.” If the D.C. City Council’s goal is to unconstitutionally encumber the right to bear arms for lawful self-defense, then the law is certainly working.

This prevailing authoritarian mindset in D.C. government is exactly why the “Second Amendment Enforcement Act” (SAEA) is so important. The SAEA is federal legislation that overrides the D.C. City Council’s authority to regulate firearms, by shifting that authority to the U.S. Congress. The legislation is analogous to state preemption laws restricting municipalities from creating an unnavigable patchwork of local laws. In addition, the legislation would remove much of D.C.’s current firearm laws, such as its restrictions on ammunition, and the ban on popular semi-automatic firearms. The D.C. city government’s perpetual disrespect for the Second Amendment--their mockery of a concealed carry regime being only the most recent offense--demands this measure to protect the rights of its residents and visitors.

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Guide To The Interstate Transportation Of Firearms

Gun Laws  

Thursday, January 1, 2015

Guide To The Interstate Transportation Of Firearms

CAUTION: Federal and state firearms laws are subject to frequent change. This summary is not to be considered as legal advice or a restatement of law.

Michigan: Anti-Gun Legislation Passed in the Middle of the Night Heads To Governor’s Desk

Friday, December 20, 2024

Michigan: Anti-Gun Legislation Passed in the Middle of the Night Heads To Governor’s Desk

With the sun setting on the 2023-2024 legislative session, yesterday the Michigan Senate held a marathon session lasting over 24 hours. While citizens were sleeping, anti-gun lawmakers were able to pass two pieces of legislation, ...

Here We Go Again: Anti-gun States Simultaneously Sue Law-Abiding Gunmaker

News  

Friday, December 13, 2024

Here We Go Again: Anti-gun States Simultaneously Sue Law-Abiding Gunmaker

Last week, the anti-gun attorneys general of Minnesota and New Jersey filed nearly simultaneous lawsuits against firearm maker Glock, essentially claiming the company was violating the laws of those states by making guns that are too easy to illegally ...

Concealed Carry Permit, Gun Sale Numbers Stay Strong in 2024

News  

Monday, December 16, 2024

Concealed Carry Permit, Gun Sale Numbers Stay Strong in 2024

The Crime Prevention Research Center (CPRC) has released the latest in its series of annual reports on trends in concealed carry permits in America.

Michigan: Final Push to Limit Gun Rights as Session Clock Runs Down

Wednesday, December 18, 2024

Michigan: Final Push to Limit Gun Rights as Session Clock Runs Down

With only a few days left in the session, anti-gun legislators are doing everything they can to pass additional legislation restricting the Second Amendment rights of Michigan citizens. The legislation below could be taken up ...

Gun Control Activists Cite “Loopholes” in CEO’s Murder, Ignore Facts and Law

News  

Monday, December 16, 2024

Gun Control Activists Cite “Loopholes” in CEO’s Murder, Ignore Facts and Law

Predictably, gun control activists are citing the cold-blooded Manhattan murder of health insurance executive Brian Thompson to call for more gun control, particularly in the hot-button areas of “ghost guns” and “3D printed firearms.” 

NYC Subway More Dangerous Than the Gridiron?

News  

Monday, December 16, 2024

NYC Subway More Dangerous Than the Gridiron?

Violent crime in New York City has been a growing concern over the last few years.  

Maine: Prepare for Progressives to Attack Your Hunting Rights

Wednesday, December 18, 2024

Maine: Prepare for Progressives to Attack Your Hunting Rights

While 2024 may be winding down now, the 2025 legislative session is about to heat up, and radical anti-gun progressive politicians are already planning new ways to strip you of your fundamental rights.  

Canada Announces New Gun Bans, More Gun Control on the Horizon

News  

Monday, December 9, 2024

Canada Announces New Gun Bans, More Gun Control on the Horizon

On December 5, at a late afternoon press conference in Ottawa, Canada’s federal Public Safety Minister Dominic LeBlanc announced that 324 additional makes and variants of rifles would be added to the 2020 list of ...

Federal District Court Strikes Down IL’s “Assault Weapon” and “Large-Capacity Magazine” Bans in NRA-Supported Case

Saturday, November 9, 2024

Federal District Court Strikes Down IL’s “Assault Weapon” and “Large-Capacity Magazine” Bans in NRA-Supported Case

Today, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Illinois struck down provisions of the Protect Illinois Communities Act (PICA) that prohibit “assault weapons” and “large-capacity magazines” in an NRA-supported case, Barnett v. Raoul.

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NRA ILA

Established in 1975, the Institute for Legislative Action (ILA) is the "lobbying" arm of the National Rifle Association of America. ILA is responsible for preserving the right of all law-abiding individuals in the legislative, political, and legal arenas, to purchase, possess and use firearms for legitimate purposes as guaranteed by the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.