By Tanya Metaksa
What’s New—POLITICS: Primary elections during Aug. 2024; The SHUSH Act: Senator Mike Lee (R-UT) announced on X (formerly known as Twitter), that he would be introducing the Silencers Helping US Save Hearing Act (SHUSH), which eliminates federal regulation of silencers as firearms; Open Fields Doctrine—How public policy is decided; California: final push to pass more anti-Second Amendment legislation. Nebraska: During the special session LB65, the Senate Revenue Committee had a hearing concerning this bill that would charge a 5% excise tax on all ammunition sales
Politics
Grades courtesy of NRA-PVF
Connecticut: Election August 13, 2024:
State Senate:
District 2: Ayana Taylor, (D) F, Douglas McCrory (D) F, Shellye Davis (D) ?
District 7: NRA Endorsed-John Kissel (R) A, George Austin (R) ?, Nathan Wolliston (D) ?, Cynthia Mangini (D) F
District 13: Elain Cariati (R) ?, Gwen Samuel (R) ?
District 22: Marilyn Moore (D) F, William Finch (D) F, all others?
District 23: Herron Gaston (D) F, all others?
District 29: Christopher Reddy (R) AQ, Susanne Witlowsli (R)?
District 36: Nicholas Simmons (D) F, Trevor Crow (D)?
Florida: Election August 20, 2024:
1st Congressional District: NRA Endorsed- Marr Gaetrz (R) A-
2nd Congressional District: NRA Endorsed-Neal Dunn(R) A
3rd Congressional District: NRA Endorsed-Kate Cammack (R) A
5th Congressional District: NRA Endorsed-John Rutherford (R) A
6th Congressional District: NRA Endorsed-Mike Waltz (R) A
7th Congressional District: NRA Endorsed-Cory Mills (R) A
8th Congressional District: NRA Endorsed-Mike Haridopolos (R) A
11th Congressional District: NRA Endorsed-Dan Webster (R) A
12th Congressional District: NRA Endorsed-Gus Bilirakis (R) A
15th Congressional District: NRA Endorsed-Laurel Lee (R) A
State Senate:
District 3: no recommendation. None of the Democrats returned their questionnaire.
District 5: Tracie Davis (D) F, Franky Jeanty?
District 7: NRA Endorsed-Tom Leek, (R) A, David Shoar AQ
District 13: NRA Endorsed-Keith Truenow (R) A
District 19: NRA Endorsed-Randy Fine (R) A
District 21: Ed Hopper (R) B, John Siamas (R) AQ
District 25: Jon Arguello (R) AQ Jose Martinez (R)?, Kristen Arrington (D) F, Alan Grayson (D) F, Carmen Torres (D), F
District 35: Rodney Jacobs, (D) F, Chad Klitzman (D) F, Barbara Sharief (D)?
State House:
District 13: Angie Nixon (D) F, Brenda Priestly Jackson (D)?
District 14: Kimberly Daniels (D) F, Lloyd Caulker (D) F, Therese Wakefield-Gamble (D)?
District 18: Kim Kendall (R) AQ, Nick Primrose (R) AQ
District 19: NRA Endorsed-Sam Greco (R) AQ, Darryl Boyer (R)?
District 20: Judson Sapp (R)?, Jamie Watts (R) AQ
District 23: Raemi Eagle-Glenn (R) AQ; Chad Johnson (R) AQ; David Arreola (D) F; Amy Trask (D) ?
District 26: Nam Cobb (R) AQ, Mike Levine (R) AQ, Addie Owens (R) AQ, Keith Farner (R) ?
District 27: Richard Gentry (R) AQ, Stephen Shives (R) AQ, Beckie Sirolli (R) AQ
District 32: Dave Weldon (R) A, Debbie Mayfield (R) A
District 33: Mike Limogello (R) AQ, Logan Luse (R) AQ, Monique Miller (R) AQ, Erika Orriss (R) AQ, Vernon Mitchell Anderson Jr. (D)?, Anthony Yantz (D) ?
District 35: NRA Endorsed-Erika Booth (R) AQ, Laura McAdams Gomez (R)?
District 41: Bruce Antone (D) F, Jane’t Buford Johnson (D)?
District 44: Jennifer “Rita” Harris (D) F, Daisy Morales (D)?
District 46: Michael Cruz (R) AQ, Christian De La Torre (R)?, Vanessa Alvarez (D)?, Jose Alvarez (D) F, Jacqueline Centeno (D) D, Robert Johnson (D) F
District 47: Anthony Nieves (D) F, Andrew Jeng (D)?, Maria Revelles (D)?
District 48: Jon Albert (R) AQ, Jerry Carter (R) AQ. Chad Davis (R) B, Deborah “Debbie” Owens (R)?, Amilee Stuckey (R) AQ, Benny Valentin (R) AQ
District 49: Jennifer Kincart Jonsson (R) AQ, Heather McArthur (R) AQ, Shawn McDonough (R) AQ, Randy Wilkinson (R)?
District 56: NRA Endorsed-Brad Yeager (R) A, Kirk Phillips (R) AQ
District 65: Nathan Kuipers (D)?, Ashley Brundage (D) F
District 67: Lisette Bonano (R)?, Rico Smith (R) ?
District 72: Bill Conerly (R) AQ, Alyssa Gay (R) AQ, Rich Tatem (R) AQ, Richard Green (R) AQ
District 74: NRA Endorsed-James Buchanan (R) A, Michelle Pozzle (R) AQ
District 76: Steven Cracche (R) AQ, Vanessa Oliver (R) AQ
District 81: Yvette Benarroch (R) AQ, Greg Folley (R) AQ
District 84: NRA Endorsed-Dana Trabulsy (R) A, Johnnie Lloyd (R)?
District 89: Debra Tendrich (D) F, Destinie Baker Sutton (D)?
District 94: Christian Acosta (R)?, Anthony Aguirre (R) B, Gabrielle Fox (R) AQ, Megan Weinberger (R)?
District 98: Keith Abel (D) ?, Shelton Pooler (D) ?, Emily Rodrigues (D) F, Mitchell Rosenwald (D) F
District 99: Daryl Campbell (D) F, Joshauwa Brown (D) F
District 106: NRA Endorsed-Fabian Basabe (R) A, Melinda Almonte (R)?
District 107: All Democrat primary candidates are?
District 109: Ashley Grant (D) F, James Bush (D)?, Roy Haremon (D)?
District 115: Alian Collazo (R)?, Omar Blanco (R) AQ, Moises Benhabib (R)?
Sheriff: (by county)
Baker: NRA Endorsed-Scotty Rhoden (R) A, JD Carpenter (R) AQ
Bay: NRA Endorsed-Tommy Ford (R) A+, Andy Husar (R)?
Citrus: NRA Endorsed-Michael Prendergast (R) A+, David Vincent (R)?
Columbia: NRA Endorsed-Mark Hunter (R) A, Wallace Kitchings (R)?
Dixie: NRA Endorsed-Darby Butler (R) A, Julie Herring (R)?
Gulf: NRA Endorsed-Mike Harrison (R) A, Vince Everett (R)?
Hardee: NRA Endorsed-Vent Crawford (NPA) A, Arnold Lanier (NPA)?
Highlands: NRA Endorsed-Paul Blackman (R) A, John Singha (R)?
Indian River: NRA Endorsed-Eric Flowers (R) A, Milo Thornton (R)?, Keith Touchberry (R)?
Jackson: NRA Endorsed-Donnie Edenfield (R) A, Chris Brannon (R)?, Jeffrey O’Pry (R)?
Jefferson: NRA Endorsed-Mac McNeil (R) A+, Andrew Fischer (R)?
Lafayette: NRA Endorsed-Brian Lamb (R) A+, Fred Allen (R)?, Scott Bonafide (R)?
Levy: NRA Endorsed-Bobby McCallum (R) A, Britton Drew (R)?
Marion: NRA Endorsed-Billy Woods (R) A, Milton Busby (R)?
St Johns: NRA Endorsed-Robert Hardwick (R) A, Jim Priester (R)?
Suwannee: NRA Endorsed-Sam St. John (R) A, Jason Rountree (R)?
Taylor: NRA Endorsed-Wayne Padgett (R) A, Eric Sadler (R)?
Wakulla: NRA Endorsed-Jared Miller (R) A, Armand Reyes (R)?
Hawaii: Election August 10, 2024:
State Senate:
District 1: Laura Acasio (D) ?. Lorraine Rodero Inouye (D) D
District 6: Jackie Keefe (D) ?, Angus L. K. Mckelve (D) D
District 22: Teri Kia Savaiinaea, (R) AQ, all others?
Kansas: Election August 6, 2024:
1st Congressional District: NRA Endorsed- Tracey Mann (R) A+
2nd Congressional District: NRA Endorsed-Derek Schmidt (R) A+
Michigan: Election August 6, 2024:
U.S. Senate: NRA Endorsed-Mike Rogers (R), A, Justin Amash (R) B, Sherry O’Donnell (R) AQ, Hill Harper (D) F, Elissa Slotkin (D) F
Minnesota: Election August 13, 2024:
1st Congressional District: NRA Endorsed-Brad Finstad (R) A
6th Congressional District: NRA Endorsed-Tom Emmer (R) A+
7th Congressional District: NRA Endorsed-Michelle Fischbach (R) A
8th Congressional District: NRA Endorsed-Pete Stauber (R) A
Missouri: Election August 6, 2024:
U.S. Senate: Senator Josh Hawley, NRA Endorsed A
Oklahoma: Election August 27, 2024:
State Senate Republican Primary
District 3: NRA Endorsed-Blake Cowboy Stephens (R) A
District 15: Lisa Standridge AQ, Robert Keyes AQ
District 33: Christi Gillespie AQ, Shelley Gwartney AQ
District 47: Kelly Hines AQ, Jenny Schmitt AQ
Tennessee: Election August 1, 2024:
U.S. Senate: Senator Marsha Blackburn,NRA Endorsed (R) A+
Vermont: Election August 13, 2024:
Governor: Esther Charlestin (D)?, Peter K. Duval (D)?
Lt. Governor: Gregory M. Thayer (R) A, John S. Rogers (R) A
Washington: Election August 27, 2024:
4th Congressional District: NRA Endorsed-Incumbent Dan Newhouse (R) A
5th Congressional District:NRA Endorsed-Jacquelin Maycumber (R) A+
6th Congressional District: Janis Clark (R)?, Drew MacEwen A, Emily Randall (D) F, Hilary Franz (D) F
Wisconsin: The Election August 13, 2024:
8th Congressional District: Andre Jacque (R) A, Roger Roth (R) A, Tony Weld (R) AQ, Kristin Lyerly (I) F
Wyoming: Election August 20, 2024:
U.S. Senate: NRA Endorsed-Senator John Barrasso, (R) A+
Presidential Election:
With President Biden forced to give up his campaign for re-election and thereby promoting Vice President Kamala Harris to Presidential candidate, the anti-Second Amendment lobbying groups are increasing their support of the Harris Presidential effort. Both Bloomberg’s Everytown and Giffords’ eponymous organization are amping up their financial contributions and their public relations is touting her anti-gun, anti-Second Amendment credentials. Everytown wrote on X (formerly known as Twitter)
“@KamalaHarris—the candidate with the strongest record on gun safety—for President of the United States. As a Senator and Vice President, Kamala has made historic strides to curb gun violence, and we can’t wait to elect her in November to continue on this life-saving progress.”
On July 26, Giffords tweeted: “We’re launching a $15 million campaign to support VP @KamalaHarris and House candidates in battleground states this cycle.”
Federal
The SHUSH Act: Senator Mike Lee (R-UT) announced on X (formerly known as Twitter), that he would be introducing the Silencers Helping US Save Hearing Act (SHUSH). He explains his bill:
“This bill eliminates federal regulation of silencers as firearms under the National Firearms Act (NFA) and the Gun Control Act (GCA), removing overly burdensome taxes, fees, and registration requirements. The bill removes current restrictions on the right to own, transport, transfer and use a silencer, including allowing current or retired law enforcement officers to carry concealed firearms with silencers. It preempts any state regulation of the manufacture, transfer, transport or possession of silencers and strikes provisions requiring a mandatory minimum sentence for possession of a silencer in certain instances. The bill also statutorily exempts silencers from regulation by the Consumer Product Safety Commission. Finally, for purposes of Section 5811 of the Internal Revenue Code, the bill contains a provision deeming the effective date to be two years prior to the date of enactment meaning that anyone who purchased a silencer and paid the $200 transfer tax within 2 years of the date of enactment will be eligible for a refund.”
H.R.6945: introduced by Rep. Michael Cloud (R-TX). This bill modifies the retention requirements for firearm transaction records of federal firearms licensees (FFLs) that go out of business. Current law generally requires FFLs that go out of business to deliver their firearm transaction records to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF). This bill removes the requirement for FFLs that go out of business to deliver their firearm transaction records to the ATF. Further, the bill requires the ATF to destroy all out-of-business records it has collected from FFLs.
Open Fields Doctrine—How public policy is decided
Most hunters and outdoor enthusiasts love the wide open spaces. However, most do not own any wide open spaces of their own and must use public lands, hunting preserves or lands that are owned by someone else. I know that over 60 years ago when we were searching for out first home one of our dreams was to buy a house with some surrounding land.
As things worked out that first house was 950 square feet but was situated on one acre of land. That has turned out to be the most land we have ever owned. With each succeeding home purchase and there have been six in total, the amount of land we purchased has never been more than one acre. Now I have learned about the open fields doctrine that gives the US government “vast powers to invade nearly 96 percent of all US private land.”
The legal case that has determined this doctrine happened exactly 100 years ago. The case, Hester v. United States, happened during prohibition when federal agents entered a private farm without a warrant and discovered a man with illegal whiskey. The Supreme Court upheld the search, stating, “the special protection accorded by the Fourth Amendment to the people in their ‘persons, houses, papers and effects’ is not extended to the open fields.”
In the article noted above, the authors make the point that “open fields” really encompass every area of private property that is not immediately surrounding the living quarters. Using the U.S. Census Bureau definition of “rural”, they estimated that 97% of all classified rural land falls under the “open fields” doctrine. They also point out there are differences between how the states have written their constitutions to define their citizens’ Fourth Amendment rights. New York state in People v. Scott (1992) rejected the federal Hester decision by holding: “Where landowners fence or post ‘No Trespassing’ signs on their private property or, by some other means, indicate unmistakably that entry is not permitted, the expectation that their privacy rights will be respected and that they will be free from unwanted intrusions is reasonable.”
Seven states have utilized the language in their state constitutions to reject the federal open fields concept—Mississippi, Montana, New York, Oregon, Tennessee, Vermont, and Washington. However, those landowners are only protected from state governmental officials, not federal government officials. That will take a rejection by the U.S. Supreme Court of the decision made 100 years ago in Hester.
State Legislation and local communities
States that are still in session: California, Massachusetts, Michigan, Nebraska (special session), New Jersey, Ohio, Pennsylvania
California: Returns from recess on August 5. This is the final push to get bills passed before adjournment Hearings are set for two Senate bills in the Assembly Appropriations Committee on August 5: SB53, which prohibits firearm possession in the home unless the firearms are stored in a California Department of Justice-approved locked box or safe, and SB1253. As I wrote in June:
“SB1253 was introduced on February 15, 2024. The bill changes the current law that states, within 120 days of bringing any firearm, except an antique firearm, into this state, a personal firearm importer shall obtain a firearm safety certificate. The new language reads: a person shall not do any of the following:…(3) Bring any firearm, except an antique firearm, into this state as a personal firearm importer, as defined in Section 17000, without obtaining a valid firearm safety certificate within 120 days of bringing that firearm into this state.
“The penalty, which is a misdemeanor, has not changed. In a tweet by the Firearms Policy Coalition:
“A committee analysis for a California bill that would require gun owners moving into the state to obtain a Firearms Safety Certificate within 120 days notes that if someone forgets to comply with the law, they’re now incentivized to never register their guns because it would require admitting to a misdemeanor.
“The complete analysis by the legislative committee can be found here. The requirements of the current law were convoluted, but now this bill makes it worse.
Nebraska: During the special session LB65, the Senate Revenue Committee had a hearing concerning this bill that would charge a 5% excise tax on all ammunition sales. 50% of the revenue would be allocated to wildlife conservation, while 50% would go into the general fund. It could be voted on at any time.
