NEW BILL: HB5471: Gun, Mag, .50 BMG BAN… End to private transfers now included…

Merry Christmas!  The Senate Democrats have dropped their gun and magazine ban as part of a “Gut and Replace” amendment to a new bill. The new bill is HB5471, specifically Senate Amendment #1. Here’s a link to the text. Expect a vote on it this evening.

The word from Springfield is this is the one that absolutely, positively has the votes to pass. 

That isn’t to say the gun control mobs are happy with this.  Far from it.  Giffords, Everytown and Brady are all pushing hard for the Senate to run with SB-2226.  The only problem there is that Doris Turner isn’t calling that bill or relinquishing control of it.  She’s a pro-gun downstate Dem serving a district that includes Carlinville, so she knows backing gun control will be a kiss of death to her re-election campaign.  Especially a bill as radical as this one.  So unless she changes her tune, passing passing SB-2226 remains a non-starter.

Back to the new “gun control vehicle” HB5471.  It remains very fatally flawed as far as the Bruen-decision goes, but it’s no longer the “You’re a Class 2 felon the moment the governor signs it into law” when it comes to magazines.

Don’t get too much relief just yet though, Kemosabe.

You remain, however, a Class 2 felon the moment the governor signs it into law for extra parts laying around…  things like collapsible stocks, flash suppressors, folding stocks and the like.  And don’t forget bump stocks, binary triggers and so forth.

And while there’s no fee for the “scary gun” and “big magazine” endorsement to your FOID card, you can only transport those guns and magazines off your property to ranges, gunsmiths, or other private property not accessible to the public.

Also of note, private transfers are prohibited effective July 1, 2023.  They must all go through a dealer for a $25 fee.  That one’s also quite ripe for a Bruen challenge.

Here’s the quick and dirty summary…

• Anyone receiving a firearm for any reason must register it with an FFL at the cost of $25 within 10 days.  The FFL shall maintain the record for 20 years.  Failure to do so is a Class A misdemeanor the first time and a felony after that.  Don’t lose who you transferred it to!  That’s also punishable.
• Moving up the registration of all transfers with an FFL from Jan 1, 2024 to July 1, 2023.  Yippee!
• Endorsements required for any prohibited makes, models of popular self-defense rifles, shotguns and handguns.  Registration requirement of previous bills has been stricken.
• National Guard soldiers aged 18-20 won’t need parents permission for FOID card.  I see this as the first step to legislation next session to ban all under 21s from having a FOID card.
• Red flag laws go from 6 months to a year.  With a renewal.
• Parts or devices that increase the rate of fire are prohibited.  Class 2 felony immediately for each device/part.  Think bump stocks, forced reset triggers, binary triggers, etc.
• Ban on the most popular semi-auto rifles used for self-defense (and some not so popular ones) with a limited handful of exceptions (.22s exempted)
• Ban on many popular self-defense semi-auto handguns.  Including anything with a support brace.
• All semi-auto shotguns that can accept more than five rounds.  (Which is pretty much all of them…  thanks to shorty shells.)
• Gun parts to include:  pistol grip or thumbhole stock, forward grip, folding, telescoping, thumbhole or detachable stock, flash suppressors, grenade launcher, barrel shroud.
• .50 caliber centerfire rifles and cartridges banned.
• 300 day grace period to destroy your prohibited “assault” guns, .50 caliber guns or .50 cal. BMG cartridges or get an endorsement of your FOID card to indicate you have them.  It looks as though the previous requirement to submit a registration list of guns is gone.
• 90 days after enactment, you cannot transport your banned guns off your property except to dealer, at a “properly licensed firing range or sport shooting competition venue” or while travelling to or from the above.
• Prohibition exemptions include cops, corrections, armed forces, security officers, or manufacturers building them for export out of the state or to .mil or LEO.
• Non-residents can only have prohibited items in the state for no more than 24 hours – but the gun has to be unloaded, encased and BOTH gun and ammo have to be not readily accessible.
• Magazine bans:  10 rounds for long guns.  15 round limit for handguns.
• Grandfathering for existing mag owners.  At 90 days though, you can only possess it on your property, to a licensed range or competition or to or from those locations.  AND THEY MUST BE TRANSPORTED UNLOADED AND ENCASED.  Existing owners MUST get endorsement from ISP for their FOID cards.
• No transfers of grandfathered mags except to heirs or out of state.  AND You must notify the ISP of the transfer!
• Penalty for magazine-related offenses is a petty offense with a $1000 fine.

Share this flyer on your social media and here’s a PDF suitable for printing and posting at your local gun shop.

WHERE WE’RE AT TO FIGHT THIS…

Guns Save Life has joined a coalition of key groups, law firms and individuals here in Illinois to counter this bill.  These include the Illinois House Freedom Caucus, FFL-IL, the Aurora Sportsmen’s Club, law firms, the Second Amendment Law Center and others.  And Todd Vandermyde.  We’re going to fight this not in the General Assembly but in the courts.

We didn’t get concealed carry by pleading and lobbying for thirty-plus years.  We got it in court.

We didn’t block the SAFE-T Act’s No Cash Bail provisions by lobbying and pleading.  Our side blocked it in court.

And we don’t stand a prayer of blocking this latest gun and magazine ban with lobbying.  But we’ll kill it in court.

Guns Save Life has already identified about a dozen potential individual plaintiffs.  These include Darren Bailey.

Our coalition has already retained not one, but two law firms here in Illinois to file a lawsuit in federal court within hours of the Governor signing a gun and magazine ban bill.  We’ll file at least one and probably more follow-on lawsuits in the days or weeks afterwards to keep up the publicity nightmare for the governor and those who voted for this patently unconstitutional bill.

Our coalition is days away with signing a retainer agreement with the Second Amendment Law Center our of California to backstop our Illinois legal teams.  Chuck Michele’s group and his law firm have experience beating California’s mag and semi-auto bans – even before Bruen came down last summer.  Now, with Bruen, their firm is busy on a host of fronts in a host of states and we’re going to be adding Illinois to that mix in the coming days.

WHAT YOU CAN DO.

First, you can join Guns Save Life.  We’re at the tip of the spear on this thing and having a bigger membership base helps a whole lot.  Yes, we’re altruistic in our advocacy.  For instance, unlike at least one organization, we negotiated a 15% discount for our members who sign up with US Concealed Carry Association instead of taking a 40% commission on all sales to our membership.   Our members are a big part of what makes GSL so influential and keeps us going.  Our members prove themselves exceptional people constantly.

Secondly, you can donate to our coalition’s legal defense funds.

To donate for our local counsel, our coalition has agreed to steer everyone to the FFL-IL organization’s legal defense fund.  It’s not perfect, but time is of the essence ad the FFL-IL’s leadership, including its head Dan Eldridge of Maxon’s, assures us that all donations will be exclusively earmarked for our Illinois legal fight.  I TRUST DAN ELDRIDGE on this, and you should too.  This one is not tax deductible.  You can donate here:

FFL IL Donations Page

To help with the California-based legal team backstopping our Illinois counsel, you can make a TAX DEDUCTIBLE donation here:

Second Amendment Law Center Donation Page.

*ALL* monies donated will go to attorneys. We’re not fundraising for attorney’s fees only to co-mingle that money with our operating funds or even a separate bank account and while letting someone else pay the bills.  Yeah, that happens elsewhere, but not here and not in our coalition.

What’s more, we’re not hiring any professional fundraisers. 

Not only that but our attorneys are giving us a discounted hourly rate because we’re non-profits and because they’re hungry for these cases because they are resume enhancers for them.  Not every law firm gets to run landmark civil rights cases.

Thirdly, if your employer offers matching gifts for donations to charities, you can use that to double (or triple) your impact with the Second Amendment Law Center.  They are a 501c3 charity and donations are tax deductible (and eligible for most companies to match donations where offered).

Fourthly, if you belong to a shooting range or a gun club, I would encourage you to reach out to their leadership and encourage them to get involved.  Attend their next board meeting and ask leadership to make a serious contribution to our legal defense funds and/or hold a fundraiser among the membership.  After all, this proposed gun legislation will effectively ban most semi-autos in our state, seriously handicapping all of us when it comes to defending ourselves, our loved ones and other innocent life.

Lastly, encourage any gun businesses you know – retailers, manufacturers, etc. – to get onboard with this.  Encourage them to post flyers to educate customers and encourage them to get involved (and donate to the legal battles ahead).  Also, encourage them to write a check themselves.  After all, if this legislation isn’t stopped, there will be a whole lot fewer guns and accessories sold.