Effective Wednesday, September 13, 2023, people buying ammunition in New York must undergo background checks.
Gun advocates tried to prevent the new legislation from going into play, believing this was an overreach by the government.
The new law is called the Empire State's Concealed Carry Improvement Act, which Governor Kathy Hochul signed into law last year.
This legislation was created after the Supreme Court struck down previous gun permit laws.
Justice Sotomayor rejected a filing for a stay of several measures of the new law, including a background check for both ammunition and the purchase of a firearm that passed the cost on to the customer.
According to the Buffalo News:
"New York amends concealed carry law after legal challenges from gun owners. Among the key elements of the Concealed Carry Improvement Act is a ban on carrying a gun in 'sensitive locations,' including schools, bars, medical facilities, stadiums, government buildings and houses of worship."
There is a big push from gun shop owners to defeat the measures requiring extra background checks, including buying ammunition.
The new law will require the customer to pay $2.50 for an ammunition purchase and $9 for a gun purchase, which the plaintiffs, Nadine and Seth Gazzola, say will put them out of business.
The government is passing the cost of the background check on to the purchaser as a way to help fund the program.
Tyler Mirra, general manager of The Firing Pin, explained, "How it used to work is you'd fill out like a background check form, and I would go straight to firearms checks (NICS), run that background check, and the government would tell me 'yes, maybe, or no.'
"Now I have to take all of your information, relay that to a trooper, then they're going to contact NICS."
She added, "You can pass the firearm background check, but you can still be denied an ammunition background check."
Anyone failing the background check has 30 days to file an appeal.
To me, this seems like overkill, and I am far from being alone in that belief.
For instance, Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.) has requested a stay from the governor to put this law into effect.
She stated:
“This state order creates a duplicative office run by the State Police to act as a middleman, transferring background checks from registered firearm dealers to the NICS on the dealer’s behalf. The sole purpose of this office will be collecting fees and increasing bureaucratic red tape.
“Not only will a background check be required for a firearm purchase, but any subsequent purchase of ammunition will undergo a background check as well. This system will only increase the likelihood of backlogs, the possibility of mishandled personal information, and fails to consider an appeals process for individuals denied during background checks.”
I have zero problem with background checks and even a waiting period, but if you have passed the background check for the firearm, why do you have to have another for ammunition? Not to mention that you must go through this check every time you come back to purchase more ammunition.
There has to be a better way if this is the route they are going to take.
Maybe a yearly background check… I don't know… I am just spitballing here, but it is yet more proof that Democrats are starting to find ways to chip away at the Second Amendment.
We can look to New Mexico to see how bold Democrats are getting on this front, with Governor Grisham literally revoking Second Amendment rights in the name of a public health emergency.
Start enforcing the laws on the books and, more importantly, hold criminals accountable for their actions.
That is how you stop gun violence, not by removing the rights of law-abiding citizens.
