National Rifle Association commentator Colion Noir claims simply handing a gun to another person in Washington state without a background is a felony under the new universal background check law.
However, law enforcement officials in Washington and supporters of the measure dispute that claim, saying it was not the lawâs intent.
Noir suggests voters were mislead by a wealthy few to support universal background checks, not checks for transfers.
âMegalomaniac billionaires like Bloomberg and Bill Gates who threw millions behind what theyâre trying to convince is common sense gun legislation â so common sense that it took 18 pages to explain,â he says. âAlbert Einstein explained the theory of relativity using Mariah Carrieâs initials and the number two. Thereâs nothing about a law takes 18 pages to explain thatâs simple. And the people of Washington are about to be caught up in the laws of vague language.â
The vague language heâs referring to is the defining of âtransfersâ in the text of the law, something many critics of the law regularly challenge.
The law states, ââTransferâ means the intended delivery of a firearm to another person without consideration of payment or promise of payment including, but not limited to, gifts and loans.â
Critics also raise issues about transfer fees, arguing that they add an unnecessary financial burden. But in response to those issues and to encourage compliance, an amendment was added to waive sales tax for the selling or transfer of guns between private, unlicensed parties who have fulfilled all background check requirements.
In support of the ballot measure, Initiative 594, gun control advocates spent nearly $9.5 million, whereas those who oppose the measure spent $1.7 million, according to news reports. Of that, the NRA spent roughly $350,000.
The initiative passed with nearly 60 percent of voters supporting it, and 55 percent rejected a competing measure proposing maintaining the status quo.
But how will I-594 âdestroy itselfâ according to Noir? He doesnât say specifically, but encourages gun owners to monitor the effectiveness of the law in order to contest it in other areas gun control groups introduce similar measures.
âThe best thing we can do as gun owners to stop this thing from spreading to other states is to keep an eye on it. Publicize it every time this law turns a law abiding citizen into a criminal â share it on social media,â he says. âDonât turn your eyes on Washington state and donât give up on the good people who live there.â