The House Public Safety Committee met this morning and advanced more gun control bills.  The bills heard and moved forward are:  

HB1622 - Provides that no person shall leave, place, or store a handgun in an unattended motor vehicle, as defined in the bill, when such handgun is visible to any person who is outside such unattended motor vehicle. The bill provides that any person violating such prohibition is subject to a civil penalty of no more than $500 and that such unattended motor vehicle may be subject to removal for safekeeping. Reported from Public Safety (13-Y 9-N) 

HB1869 – Closes so-called “boyfriend loophole.” Adds to the definition of "family or household member," as such definition relates to juvenile and domestic relations district court, a person's intimate partner, defined in the bill as an individual who, within the previous 12 months, was in a romantic, dating, or sexual relationship with the person. Reported from Public Safety and referred to Appropriations (12-Y 10-N) 

HB2064 - Makes it a Class 3 misdemeanor for any licensed manufacturer, licensed importer, or licensed dealer to sell, deliver, or transfer any firearm to any person other than a licensed manufacturer, licensed importer, or licensed dealer unless the transferee is provided with a locking device for that firearm and the firearm is accompanied by a warning, in conspicuous and legible type in capital letters printed on a separate sheet of paper included within the packaging enclosing the firearm, that firearms should be locked and kept away from children and that there may be civil and criminal liability for failing to do so. The bill provides exceptions for law-enforcement and governmental agencies. Reported from Public Safety (12-Y 10-N) 

Both HB1869 and HB2064 were hard in the Firearms Subcommittee Thursday afternoon and reported to the full committee.  There is the practice this year in both House Public Safety and Senate Courts that if a bill before the committee was passed last year, the chairman of the committee is not taking testimony on the bill this year, they are simply moving the bill forward.  HB1869 is one of those bills and they did not take testimony from either side yesterday.  

Also on the docket in yesterday's subcommittee were four pro-rights bills.  All were defeated.  One of those bills, HB2145 had bi-partisan support and the gun ban lobby did not testify against the bill, but the subcommittee did not think the bill would accomplish the stated purpose as it was drafted.  The pro-rights bills defeated on Thursday were:  

HB1559 - Provides that a person who was previously issued a concealed handgun permit is not required to provide any proof of training or demonstration of competence to be issued a renewal permit.
Subcommittee recommends laying on the table (5-Y 3-N) 

HB2145 - Removes 30-day date of issue restriction when establishing personal identification and residence in Virginia with a driver's license or an identification card without a photograph for the purposes of purchasing a firearm.  Subcommittee recommends laying on the table (8-Y 0-N) 

HB2412 - Provides that the prohibition on carrying a firearm or explosive material in any building owned or leased by the Commonwealth shall not apply to any highway rest area or government store, as those terms are defined in relevant law.  Subcommittee recommends passing by indefinitely (5-Y 3-N) 

HB2414 - Removes the requirement that an applicant for a concealed handgun permit demonstrate competence with a handgun in person. The bill adds the option for such applicant to participate in certain firearms safety or training courses or classes via a live class conducted using a two-way electronic video and audio communication system.  Subcommittee failed to recommend reporting (3-Y 6-N).

Crossover (last day for each house to act on its own legislation, except Budget Bills) is February 4.  Yesterday was the last Firearms Subcommittee meeting before crossover and today was the last meeting of the full committee for the first half of the session. 

There is one Firearms related bill on the docket for Monday's Senate Courts of Justice Committee, SB1450.  This bill is an attack on the firearms industry and would create standards of conduct for firearm industry members and requires the industry to establish and implement controls regarding the manufacture, sale, distribution, use, and marketing of their as defined in the bill.  This bill passed last year in both the House and the Seante and was vetoed by Governor Youngkin.  A companion bill has already passed the House this session. 

It's not hyperbole to say that President Donald J. Trump pulled off the biggest political comeback in history when he won the 2024 election over Vice President Kamala Harris.  Winning a landslide Electorial College Victory and what looks to be a popular vote victory, he pulled together the most diverse coalition for a Republican in modern history.  As radio host Erick-Woods Erickson wrote earlier today,"Black and Hispanic men broke in disproportionate numbers for Trump from The Bronx to Miami".  Erickson continued:

Democrats lost racial and ethnic minorities because they treated them as demographic blocks who were more interested in the power dynamics of historical grievances than how to afford groceries and keep boys out of their daughters’ bathrooms.

Last night's victory is good news for gun owners.  It means that President Trump will likely have a chance to solidify the right of center majority on the U.S. Supreme Court for a generation.  He will have the opportunity to appoint lower court positions which are also important to our rights.  And, it likely means the end of President Biden's White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention, or at least the end of it in its current form.

Last night was a good night for freedom.  Now, for those of us in Virginia, we need to prepare for next year's statewide elections where we will elect a new Governor, Lt. Governor, and Attoney General.  We saw last year just how radical Virginia's gun ban Democrats are.  We will have our work cut out for us.

Tom Knighton over at Bearingarms.com points out that "The Trace", Michael Bloomberg's gun control mouth piece unintentionally laid out reasons that we should vote for President Donald Trump to be the nation's 47th President. Knighton shared an X post  from the Trace's Jennifer Mascia that summed up the article.

If Trump wins he's expected to:
• fire the ATF director
• appoint a pro-gun AG
• reverse Biden's executive orders on guns including pistol brace + ghost gun rules
• shutter White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention@ByChipBrownlee and I report:https://t.co/dCiSrU6xtA

— Jennifer Mascia (@JenniferMascia) November 1, 2024 Looks like good reasons to vote for Donald Trump.  Polls open at 6:00 AM in Virginia on Tuesday.  Make sure if you didn't vote early, that you vote tomorrow.

 VSSA received the below alert from the Virginia Hunting Dog Alliance and we are sharing it for our members who hunt deer and other game with hunting dogs.

We need you at DWR on October 24th @ 9AM

Folks,

DWR has finally agreed to consider the two hound proposals at their upcoming board meeting on Thursday, October 24th. These were the two proposals that had a 45-day public comment period earlier this summer regarding GPS collars and hound trespass.
From their most recent press release:

“The Board will be considering regulatory proposals 4VAC15-40-310 and 4VAC15-40-320 regarding hunting with hounds, specifically, Board proposals six and seven, which may be viewed at https://dwr.virginia.gov/wp-content/uploads/media/Board-Proposals.pdf.”
These two regulations, particularly the trespass one (#7), are serious impediments to hunting with hounds in Virginia.
The trespass regulation will create a Class 3 misdemeanor for dog trespass. More importantly, it specifically creates a criminal trespass offense for a singular, targeted group of people: deer and bear hound hunters. It does not include all hunters with dogs and does not include all dogs in the general population.
We need hound hunters to show up and speak up
The most important thing you can do is be there. We need hunters to talk about what hunting with hounds means to them. They need to hear why hound hunting in Virginia is important. They need to hear how it is a necessary tool for wildlife management. You are a citizen of this great Commonwealth. We need you to express why you hunt with hounds and why you love hunting with hounds.

Despite the fact the both the GPS proposal and the trespass proposal were overwhelmingly opposed by the public (80%+), we cannot assume that DWR will follow accordingly.

Be courteous. Dress nicely. Wear an orange hat. The manner in which you present yourself is important!

If you cannot make it to the meeting, you can still participate and sign up to speak online. DWR still has not published their meeting agenda or signup links. We will share them with you once they have been published.

Why we need you there
When we have multiple dogs being shot in a season and DWR says nothing.

When we have more dog injury and tracking collar violations against dogs than we do RTR violations and DWR says nothing.

When we commit a fraction of all hunting violations but are continuously being singled out as the main problem.

When DWR is slow to deal with wildlife issues.

When DWR targets select hunting populations.

Those who oppose us were not successful during the General Assembly last year.
Those who oppose us were not successful at the Virginia Supreme Court.
Those who oppose us will be at the upcoming DWR meeting.
The meeting will be at DWR headquarters:
October 24th at 9am
The address is:
7870 Villa Park Dr.
Suite 400
Henrico, VA 23228