Last week New York Governor Kathy Hochul signed five new anti-gun bills, including one which will allow the government to more closely track your guns and ammo purchases.
(New York is losing ground in other anti-gun bills including the “Concealed Carry Improvement Act” which is being challenged in numerous lawsuits, and last week suffered another loss as we reported.)
- S7365B/A10053A makes the already-illegal “pistol converter” (also known as a “Glock switch”) illegal.
- S3340/A5873 requires the court to notify the statewide registry of orders of protection and warrants when a temporary and/or final extreme risk protection order (ERPO) is issued, ensuring that ERPOs are tracked in the statewide registry of orders of protection and warrants.
- A7717B/S8589A allows police agencies instead of individual police officers to be listed as the petitioner in an ERPO proceeding, removing transparency in the process.
- S8479A/A9862A requires credit and debit card issuers to use the firearms and ammunition retailers merchant category code (MCC) so that they can track your guns and ammo purchases.
- S9760/A10356A requires a firearms licensing officer, when issuing a license, to tell you that guns are dangerous.
In this list, the greatest concern are the ERPO law and the merchant tracking law. The ERPO (‘red flag’) law removes yet another layer of transparency in the ERPO process, which is already being abused by law enforcement to get around Fourth Amendment rights and due process requirements (see our reporting here on the case of Kyle Arena).
The law forcing merchants to categorize your purchases is also of grave concern. In stark contrast, Tennessee passed a law prohibiting this kind of tracking.
Anything that can be measured and tracked will most definitely be abused by the government. You don’t have to believe us however, Hochul said it in her own words:
“We’re also going to require credit and debit card companies to track purchases at gun dealerships, and make it in turn for us to monitor the sale of guns and ammunition,” Hochul said at the signing, adding, “So we know if someone’s stockpiling ammo, not a good sign.”
It is important to note that “stockpiling” of either firearms or ammunition is not defined in either federal law or any state law anywhere in the US. Stockpiling is not a crime anywhere, and if it were, it would not pass constitutional muster.
New York becomes the third state, joining California and Colorado, to enact this requirement.
Other New York politicians were equally as zealous over controlling your Second Amendment rights.
State Senator, Zellnor Myrie, said:
Banks routinely use data to identify and deter all kinds of illicit activity, but one industry– the gun industry– has fought tooth and nail to prevent this kind of risk analysis. By signing this bill into law, New York is establishing a common standard for all industries and ensuring that obviously suspicious patterns of firearm purchases can be detected. I’m grateful to my partner, Assemblymember Michaelle Solages, and to Governor Hochul for continuing our work to put safer streets ahead of the gun industry’s profits.
No one has defined what a “suspicious pattern of firearms purchase” means or how it breaks any laws. The result is, if you shoot a lot – because it’s your right and you enjoy doing so – you will be scrutinized by the State. And don’t be surprised if they employ the previously-mentioned ERPO against you if you come on their radar.
As Hochul works fast and furiously to infringe on your rights, we suggest you find alternative methods of payment to conduct your transactions, consider using out-of-state retailers when possible, and support the Second Amendment rights groups that fight for you every day (links are on our home page).
