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Vote NO 594

The Washington Council of Police & Sheriffs Opposes Initiative 594

The Washington Council of Police & Sheriffs, the state's oldest and largest law enforcement organization opposes Initiative 594. WACOPS represents more than 4500 active duty police and sheriffs deputies. Click here to read WACOPS position paper on Initiative 594.

 

 

I-594 |09-03-2014

Join the Washington Council of Police and Sheriffs and the NRA in Opposing Initiative 594

Initiative 594 is the latest and most comprehensive attempt to restrict the rights of law-abiding gun owners in the Evergreen State. Although proponents describe it as a “universal background check” measure, Initiative 594 is in reality a universal handgun registration scheme. Under I-594, every time a handgun is transferred, the person receiving the handgun will have their name added to the government database being maintained by the state Department of Licensing. 

Under I-594, every time a handgun is transferred, the person receiving the handgun will have their name added to the government database being maintained by the state Department of Licensing.

  • Virtually every firearm transfer - with very few and limited exceptions - would be required to go through a licensed firearms dealer under the provisions of I-594.
  • I-594 will specifically regulate transfers, not sales.  Under the language of I-594, in virtually all cases, a person merely handing his or her firearm to a family member or a friend cannot do so without brokering the transfer through a gun dealer with the accompanying fees, paperwork, taxes and, in the case of handguns, state registration.

  • I-594 also doubles the state waiting period on handgun sales from five to ten days and extends it to every private transfer of a handgun!

  • The only thing that I-594 would accomplish is the creation of a government record of all lawfully transferred handguns in Washington, which would facilitate their future confiscation.

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Fairfax, Va. – The National Rifle Association (NRA) has released a one-minute digital video as part of it's online campaign to defeat Washington State Ballot Initiative 594. The video, titled  I-594 Will Not Make Washington Safer, features Seattle resident Anette Wachter, "The 30 Cal Gal" blogger and U.S. Long Range Rifle Team member.

Fairfax, Va. – A majority of Washington State’s 39 sheriffs have come out in opposition to anti-gun Washington State Ballot Initiative 594.  The sheriffs oppose I-594 because it will not make anyone safer, will strain scarce law enforcement resources, will criminalize the lawful behavior of millions of law-abiding gun owners in Washington and will be unenforceable.  Instead, I-594 would vastly expand the state’s handgun registry and force law-abiding gun owners to pay fees and get the government’s permission to sell or even loan a firearm to a friend or family member.

To date, 27 of the 39 sheriffs have publicly opposed I-594.  

 

Yesterday, the Washington State Republican Party issued a press release formally opposing Washington’s anti-gun Initiative 594. 

Initiative 594 is a measure that will appear on Washington’s November ballot. A universal handgun registration scheme, I-594 would regulate transfers — not just sales — of all firearms in the Evergreen State. That means if a friend wants to try your gun at the range, you would have to broker the transfer through a gun dealer, with all accompanying fees, paperwork, use taxes and, in the case of handguns, state registration. I-594 also doubles the state waiting period on handgun sales from 5 to 10 days and extends it to every private transfer of a handgun. #VoteNo594

The Washington Alliance for Gun Responsibility (WAGR) talks a lot about how Initiative 594 will keep guns out of the hands of criminals.  What they don’t report is that Initiative 594 is not aimed at criminals who, by definition, do not obey the law.  

The Washington Council of Police & Sheriffs, the state's oldest and largest law enforcement organization opposes Initiative 594. WACOPS represents more than 4500 active duty police and sheriffs deputies. Click here to read WACOPS position paper on Initiative 594.

 

 

Right now in the state of Washington, Bloomberg is pushing a November ballot measure that is promoted as being about background checks for private sales. But it is really a law to criminalize most gun owners, including those who never sell guns. If passed, the deceptive Bloomberg ban for Washington state is then going to become the national model, to gradually be imposed on gun owners nationwide.

By injecting large sums of money into advertisement campaigns designed to mislead voters on Initiative 594, misguided anti-gun elitists seek to purchase the constitutional freedoms of Washington residents out from under them. 

 

As a result of an in-depth debate between the National Rifle Association and the Washington Alliance for Gun Responsibility (WAGR), the Washington Council of Police and Sheriffs (WACOPS) has joined the Washington State Law Enforcement Firearms Instructors Association (WSLEFIA) in opposing the 18-page gun control measure, Initiative 594, on the Washington ballot this fall.

  

Tonight, a state anti-gun group called Washington Ceasefire will be holding a “gun reform” panel where the public is invited to engage panelists in a conversation about gun rights in Washington State.  Currently, panelists consist of several anti-gun individuals, including President of the Brady Campaign, Dan Gross.  This event will be held downstairs at Town Hall Seattle, 1119 Eighth Avenue, Seattle, WA 98101.  Doors open at 6:30 p.m. and there is an entry fee of $5, which goes to Town Hall Seattle for production costs.

Last night, the Washington Legislature adjourned their 2014 session and while Initiative 594 stalled in the state Capitol, the fight is just beginning as the deeply flawed I-594 will now go to the November Ballot.

On Tuesday, January 28, Washington citizens will get their first opportunity to testify on Initiative-594, a major gun control bill being falsely promoted as a “Universal Background Check” measure.  The House Judiciary Committee will take I-594 up at 1:30 p.m. in Hearing Room A in the John L. O’Brien House building on the Capitol campus in Olympia.  The Senate Law & Justice Committee will take I-594 up the following day, Wednesday, January 29, at 1:30 p.m. in Hearing Room 1 in the John A. Cherberg Senate Building.

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