Gun bill misfires

Philly lawmaker proposes making state gun owners pay to register each weapon.
TOM VENESKY tvenesky@timesleader.com

It’s a problem that Wright Township Police Chief Joe Jacob says never changes: criminals who commit crimes with guns usually obtain the weapons illegally.

That’s why Jacob feels a bill introduced in the state House of Representatives won’t do anything to help police officers fight crime.

House Bill 760, introduced by state Rep. Angel Cruz, D-Philadelphia County, would require gun owners to register all firearms with the state every year for a fee of $10 per gun. The measure would also require all gun owners to submit to fingerprinting, background checks and passport-style photos in order to obtain a registration card. The registration card for each gun would have to be carried with that firearm at all times.

If a registration application is rejected, the applicant would have to surrender their firearms to the state police.

Cruz said the bill is a way to implement a tracking system to determine the source of firearms for criminals who commit gun violence.

But, Jacob sees it differently. He says the measure won’t help officers and won’t help law-abiding gun owners. Nor will it decrease gun violence, he said.

“That bill will not lessen crime in Philadelphia or anywhere else in the state,” Jacob said. “Criminals are using guns that are stolen or bought illegally on the street.

“I do not see how this will decrease gun violence or the amount of guns in criminals’ hands.”

That’s because the measure, which applies to handguns and rifles, only targets those who purchase their firearms legally, Jacob said.

The bill has put hunting clubs and gun owners in the area on alert. Jerry Schutz, president of the 800-member Luzerne County Federation of Sportsmen, said his members are “up in arms” over the measure. The bill would disarm honest citizens, he said.

“It’s an outrageous piece of legislation. Do they actually think criminals are going to register their guns? The Supreme Court has already ruled that criminals don’t have to register their firearms,” Schutz said, adding the measure is also a money-making scheme.

“If you have 20 guns, that’s $200 you have to pay every year,” he said. “I estimate that each member in our organization has at least four guns in their home.”

Jenkins Township resident David Kopetchny, president of the PA Stump Jumpers hunting club, said the bill is another attempt to undermine the rights of gun owners. The registration fee would create another hardship for him to continue hunting, he said.

Kopetchny said he is a disabled veteran who lives on $960 per month. The game he brings home during hunting season is a valuable food source, he said, but the cost of licenses, ammunition and possibly gun registration may make hunting too costly of an endeavor for Kopetchny to continue.

“I own eight guns, and that would be $80 in permits every year. It’s nonsense,” he said. “If this goes through, I can’t afford to hunt.”

Some local lawmakers – including state representatives Mike Carroll, D-Avoca; Phyllis Mundy, D-Kingston; Eddie Day Pashinski, D-Wilkes-Barre; Jim Wansacz, D-Old Forge; and John Yudichak, D-Nanticoke – have said they will vote against the bill.

Carroll said the bill has “no chance.”

He said the proposal was drafted in response to the rise in crime in the Philadelphia area. Carroll doesn’t fault the lawmakers from making an attempt, but he said the bill isn’t the solution.

The bill has four co-sponsors, Mundy said, an indication that it lacks support. Like Carroll, she doubts the bill will be brought up for a vote.

Pashinski called the bill “economically infeasible” because gun collectors and hunters typically own more than one firearm. He said gun-related crimes are a serious issue, but other avenues have to be looked at to solve the problem.

Yudichak said his office has received many calls from gun owners and hunters concerned about the bill.

Many gun-control efforts in the legislature are misguided, he said, because they target law-abiding citizens and not the criminal element.

Yudichak recommended taking another direction to curb crime.

“I think it’s the drug crime that needs to be combated,” he said. “We need to focus on the true problem – drugs. That’s what is driving the issue.”