DMK
April 1, 2003, 07:18 PM
GRNC Alert 3-31-03:
GUN SHOW BILL IS BACK
SEN. TONY RAND PUTS 'LIPSTICK ON THE PIG'
[Analysis] Question: When is a "sales tax" bill not really a tax bill?
Answer: When it's really a GUN REGISTRATION / GUN SHOW bill. We didn't get a warm, fuzzy feeling when Senator TONY RAND (D-Cumberland, GRNC 0-star) approached us during a recent committee hearing with a rather oblique, "Y'all don't have anything against collecting sales tax at gun shows, do
you?"
Now it is all too obvious what he was angling for: SB 610, "Tax Collection at Gun Shows." Ignore for a moment that gun shows are no different than any other show, be it for computers, boats, or anything else, and should therefore not warrant special attention for collection of sales tax.
Because in reality, Sen. Rand's "tax" bill is exactly the same "gun show" bill introduced in the last session by Sen. Fountain Odom-the anti-gun politician YOU DEFEATED in the last election. You can almost see Rand's thought process: He couldn't call it a gun show bill: That has gone down in flames at least three times in the last five years. And he certainly couldn't let it be known that it REGISTERS PRIVATE GUN SALES, since that cost Sen. Odom his seat in the last election. So what did Sen. Rand do? HE PUT "LIPSTICK ON THE PIG" by introducing the same anti-gun legislation under the stated intention of "collecting sales tax."
WHAT SB 610 DOES:
* REGISTERS ALL PRIVATE GUN SALES at gun shows through the FBI's computerized National Instant Check System. Like "gun show" bills of yore, this even includes most BLACK POWDER, MUZZLE-LOADING firearms.
* DEFINES 'GUN SHOW' TO INCLUDE SHOOTING COMPETITIONS. If you hold a shooting match at which ten people attend and bring 100 guns "OR OTHER WEAPONS" (including knives), and someone has the audacity to actually sell one of his guns, guess what: You just had a "gun show," for which a permit
is required, and for which the organizer is subject to CRIMINAL PROSECUTION
* SHUTS DOWN MOST GUN SHOWS: First, unless the gun show promoter lives in the county where the show is held, he will be ineligible for the required gun show permit. Second, it subjects promoters to criminal prosecution for illegal sales...even if they make every good-faith effort to comply with the law. Unsurprisingly, several promoters have already told GRNC that they will not hold NC shows under those conditions.
IMMEDIATE ACTION REQUIRED
* USE GRNC'S AUTOMATED E-MAILER at
http://www.grnc.org/alerts/alert3_31_03.htm to immediately contact all members of the NC Senate. TIME IS CRITICAL: The calendar for bills introduced during the session means that this bill may get a hearing soon.
* CONTACT YOUR STATE SENATOR and tell him or her to oppose SB 610 by all means procedural and substantive.
DELIVER THIS MESSAGE
Dear Senator:
Although SB 610: "Tax Collection at Gun Shows" purports to simply collect sales tax, it is actually an over-reaching gun registration bill which will also shut down most gun shows in North Carolina. Given that a nearly exact copy of this bill has been repeatedly rejected by the North Carolina General Assembly, Senator Tony Rand's bill is just an exercise in putting lipstick on the same, old pig.
Like previous "gun show" bills, SB 610 registers private gun sales through the FBI's computerized National Instant Check System, classifies things as benign as a private barbeque as a "gun show," and subjects gun show promoters to criminal prosecution for illegal sales beyond their control, even if they made every good faith effort to comply with the law. I strongly urge you to oppose SB 610 by all means procedural and
substantive. At your earliest convenience, please let me know your position on this issue.
Respectfully,
Grass Roots North Carolina, P.O. Box 10684, Raleigh, NC 27605,
919-664-8565, www.grnc.org, GRNC Alert Hotline: (919) 562-4137
http://www.grnc.org/alerts/alert3_31_03.htm
GUN SHOW BILL IS BACK
SEN. TONY RAND PUTS 'LIPSTICK ON THE PIG'
[Analysis] Question: When is a "sales tax" bill not really a tax bill?
Answer: When it's really a GUN REGISTRATION / GUN SHOW bill. We didn't get a warm, fuzzy feeling when Senator TONY RAND (D-Cumberland, GRNC 0-star) approached us during a recent committee hearing with a rather oblique, "Y'all don't have anything against collecting sales tax at gun shows, do
you?"
Now it is all too obvious what he was angling for: SB 610, "Tax Collection at Gun Shows." Ignore for a moment that gun shows are no different than any other show, be it for computers, boats, or anything else, and should therefore not warrant special attention for collection of sales tax.
Because in reality, Sen. Rand's "tax" bill is exactly the same "gun show" bill introduced in the last session by Sen. Fountain Odom-the anti-gun politician YOU DEFEATED in the last election. You can almost see Rand's thought process: He couldn't call it a gun show bill: That has gone down in flames at least three times in the last five years. And he certainly couldn't let it be known that it REGISTERS PRIVATE GUN SALES, since that cost Sen. Odom his seat in the last election. So what did Sen. Rand do? HE PUT "LIPSTICK ON THE PIG" by introducing the same anti-gun legislation under the stated intention of "collecting sales tax."
WHAT SB 610 DOES:
* REGISTERS ALL PRIVATE GUN SALES at gun shows through the FBI's computerized National Instant Check System. Like "gun show" bills of yore, this even includes most BLACK POWDER, MUZZLE-LOADING firearms.
* DEFINES 'GUN SHOW' TO INCLUDE SHOOTING COMPETITIONS. If you hold a shooting match at which ten people attend and bring 100 guns "OR OTHER WEAPONS" (including knives), and someone has the audacity to actually sell one of his guns, guess what: You just had a "gun show," for which a permit
is required, and for which the organizer is subject to CRIMINAL PROSECUTION
* SHUTS DOWN MOST GUN SHOWS: First, unless the gun show promoter lives in the county where the show is held, he will be ineligible for the required gun show permit. Second, it subjects promoters to criminal prosecution for illegal sales...even if they make every good-faith effort to comply with the law. Unsurprisingly, several promoters have already told GRNC that they will not hold NC shows under those conditions.
IMMEDIATE ACTION REQUIRED
* USE GRNC'S AUTOMATED E-MAILER at
http://www.grnc.org/alerts/alert3_31_03.htm to immediately contact all members of the NC Senate. TIME IS CRITICAL: The calendar for bills introduced during the session means that this bill may get a hearing soon.
* CONTACT YOUR STATE SENATOR and tell him or her to oppose SB 610 by all means procedural and substantive.
DELIVER THIS MESSAGE
Dear Senator:
Although SB 610: "Tax Collection at Gun Shows" purports to simply collect sales tax, it is actually an over-reaching gun registration bill which will also shut down most gun shows in North Carolina. Given that a nearly exact copy of this bill has been repeatedly rejected by the North Carolina General Assembly, Senator Tony Rand's bill is just an exercise in putting lipstick on the same, old pig.
Like previous "gun show" bills, SB 610 registers private gun sales through the FBI's computerized National Instant Check System, classifies things as benign as a private barbeque as a "gun show," and subjects gun show promoters to criminal prosecution for illegal sales beyond their control, even if they made every good faith effort to comply with the law. I strongly urge you to oppose SB 610 by all means procedural and
substantive. At your earliest convenience, please let me know your position on this issue.
Respectfully,
Grass Roots North Carolina, P.O. Box 10684, Raleigh, NC 27605,
919-664-8565, www.grnc.org, GRNC Alert Hotline: (919) 562-4137
http://www.grnc.org/alerts/alert3_31_03.htm