One of several pieces of gun control legislation pre-filed for the 2021 Texas legislative session in Austin is a measure aimed at eliminating the Lone Star State’s firearm preemption law, according to KLBJ radio.
House Bill 238 would allow local governments to establish their own gun control ordinances, including bans, the story said.
According to a story in The Texan, HB 238 is one of a dozen bills pre-filed by State Rep. Terry Meza (D-Irving). She is also sponsoring legislation requiring gun owners to keep their firearms locked up at all times (HB 185), and there are two bills designed to ban the private sale of firearms at gun shows.
But it is the preemption bill that may be most troubling to Texas gun owners, because it would do away with uniformity from the Red River to the Rio Grande. Preemption is a prize gun prohibitionists in several states are hoping to knock down.
The concept began more than 30 years ago, establishing state legislatures as the sole authority when it comes to setting gun laws. Under this system, gun laws would be uniform from Amarillo to Brownsville.
Other anti-gun proposals include HB 118, which would eliminate firearms transfers between family members without a background check, according to WLBJ. Two other measures, HB 172 and HB 241 “would ban the transfer or possession of certain ‘commonly owned semi-automatic firearms’,” the station reported.
Yet another proposed law would prohibit campus carry (HB 201) and HB 127 would prohibit the open carry of long rifles. Along with those bills, HB 178 and HB 234 would ban the sale or possession of magazines holding more than ten rounds, WLBJ said.
There could be a collision of mindsets with three other measures. While WLBJ reported that “HB 164 and HB 395 relate to Red Flag laws, allowing the removal of a person’s firearm without due process,” The Texan was reporting “Rep. Briscoe Cain (R-Deer Park) filed a bill (HB 336) that would prohibit ‘red flag’ laws, also known as extreme risk protection orders (ERPO).” The story notes Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick’s opposition to ERPOs, and he will be presiding over the state Senate.
According to The Texan article, Democrats have so far filed 28 pieces of legislation, all aimed at adding further restrictions on firearms owners. Meza has filed a dozen of them.
Anti-gunners have been looking to flip Texas to Democrat control, perhaps taking advantage of all the new residents pouring in from anti-gun states such as California, many of whom have apparently brought their Democrat politic with them.
Gun prohibitionists are also getting busy in other states, perhaps energized by what appears to have been a Joe Biden victory earlier this month.
