*NRA's List Of Win-Some, Lose-Some...

ALASKA
On June 20, Governor Frank Murkowski (R) signed SB 274, important legislation pertaining to the disposal of forfeited, surplus, and/or unclaimed firearms. Under existing law, the state must dispose of forfeited, surplus, or recovered but unclaimed firearms and ammunition by selling or trading them to a licensed dealer. Firearms and ammunition that are not "serviceable," "safe," or "legal" shall be destroyed. SB 274, sponsored by Senator Fred Dyson (District I-R), extends the requirements to local municipalities as well as the state and removes the very subjective reference to "serviceable" and "safe." The bill requires firearms and ammunition that are sold, to be done so at a public sale, not limited solely to dealers. SB 274 will allow trade-ins for credit on new firearms as well as donations and transfers between law enforcement agencies. However, it does not guarantee that all firearms would be made available to the public. Firearms disposed of in any "non-sale" methods must be reported to the legislature annually during budget review sessions in the interest of oversight. A special thank you to all NRA members for your calls and e-mails in support of SB 274 during the legislative session!

CALIFORNIA
The State Senate is now on vacation until August 7, and AB 352, sponsored by Assemblyman Paul Koretz (D-42), and AB 2714, sponsored by Assemblyman Alberto Torrico (D-20), are on hold for a vote until the Senate reconvenes. AB 352 would require that serial numbers, make, and model numbers be micro-stamped into the interior surface or internal working parts of all handguns produced after a certain date. AB 2714 would ban the sale of ammunition through the mail or internet. Please continue to contact your Senator and urge him or her to protect law-abiding gun owners by voting against AB 352 and AB 2714. For more information on both of these bills, please visit www.calnra.com/.

DELAWARE
Earlier this year, Delaware's efforts to join the ranks of the vast majority of states by becoming a "shall-issue" Right-to-Carry state, through passage of HB 359, appeared to be on the fast track for success. However, due to political games played by anti-gunners, the result was the introduction of a number of "killer amendments" designed to defeat the bill and further intrude upon the privacy of the lawful citizens of the State of Delaware. In the end, the chances of one of the truly onerous amendments being attached to the bill was too great a risk to take on behalf the law-abiding citizens of Delaware. NRA-ILA will be publishing "grades" for all of the major candidates for public office this November, and rest assured, HB 359 will be high among the issues considered when those grades are assigned.

MICHIGAN
Important legislation has been sent to Governor Jennifer Granholm's (D) desk! On June 29, the "Castle Doctrine" package comprised of HB 5142, by Representative Tom Casperson (R-108), HB 5143, by Representative Rick Jones (R-71), HB 5153, by Representative Leslie Mortimer (R-65), HB 5548, by Representative Tim Moore (R-97), SB 1046, by Senator Alan Cropsey (R-33), as well as SB 1185, by Senator Ron Jelinek (R-21), overwhelmingly passed the State Legislature and is now en route to the Governor. This legislative package will help the citizens of Michigan by clarifying the rights and duties of self-defense and the defense of others within one's home and/or occupied vehicle and provide immunity from civil liability for self-defense actions. Along with the "Castle Doctrince" package, Senate Bill 1105, sponsored by Senator Michelle McManus (R-35), and House Bill 5192, sponsored by Representative Scott Hummel (R-93) are also headed to the Governor. SB 1105 makes it easier for new participants to become involved in our hunting heritage by allowing them to hunt with a licensed adult for up to two years without taking lengthy hunter education courses. HB 5192 drops the hunting age from 14 to 12 for big game and 12 to 10 for small game. Please contact Governor Granholm TODAY at (517) 373-3400 or (517) 335-7858 and urge her to support "Castle Doctrine" legislation, SB 1105, and HB 5192.

NEW JERSEY
By a vote of 7 to 1, the Jersey City Council passed its "one-gun-a-month" handgun rationing scheme at its June 28 Council meeting, but unanimously defeated its "junk gun" ban, which is being re-drafted a second time and will be re-introduced at a future date. After a heated debate between gun rights activists and anti-gun extremists, City Council President Mariano Vega, Jr. admitted that the gun rationing ordinance "is feel-good legislation that will probably not reduce crime, but we have to start somewhere, so I am voting yes." The lone vote against the rationing scheme came from Councilman Michael Sottolano (sottolanom@jcnj.org) (201) 547-5098). Members are encouraged to contact Councilman Sottolano and thank him for his courage and integrity. Ordinance # 06-082 bans the purchase of more than one handgun per month, and leaves Jersey City residents unable to defend themselves if their firearm requires repair or is stolen within four weeks of purchase. The ordinance will become effective 20 days after passage, upon signing by the Mayor. The ordinance violates New Jersey's preemption law, which forbids municipalities from regulating where the state has already spoken. The Association of New Jersey Rifle & Pistol Clubs (NRA's New Jersey State affiliate) has vowed to challenge the illegal ordinance in Court, and CeaseFire New Jersey executives threatened at the hearing to organize a defense on behalf of Jersey City using pro-bono services of a major New Jersey law firm.

* No Texans were embarassed during the writing of this post. Texans began relinguishing their rights to keep and bear arms, and gun owners across the country responded with what appears to have been a sufficiently fervent outcry to awaken at least some citizens of the Lone Star State, so no further giveaways have taken place. It does behoove each and every one of us to continue to monitor this situation, and Messenger strongly urges you to become a Texican-Mentor by joining WUPPASS, or WAKE UP, PARDNER AND SHOOT SOMEONE (TM), in an effort to remind Texans that Cowboy Action Shooting has not supplanted the 2nd Amendment.