St. Paul, Minn. — Today, House Republicans once again halted efforts to move forward two gun-violence prevention bills that Rep. Dave Pinto (DFL-St. Paul) sponsored. Earlier this month, Republican members of the committee moved to ‘table’ the bills - for criminal background checks and “extreme risk protection orders” - saying that they needed more time to examine the issue. The bills, which have bipartisan support, needed to pass from the Public Safety Committee today in order to meet legislative deadlines for 2018.
Rep. JoAnn Ward (DFL – Woodbury) who serves on the House Public Safety Committee released the following statement:
“Minnesota Republicans had a chance to show political courage today and they failed. Common sense initiatives like criminal background checks and measures to help law enforcement and family members keep guns out of the hands of those who pose a danger to themselves or others are widely supported. In fact, 82% of Minnesotans support background checks on all gun sales, including 74% of NRA members. How many more people have to die before action is taken? I’ve been ready to take action on reducing senseless gun violence since I was elected. It’s our responsibility as lawmakers to deliver public safety and our constituents are pleading for it. Minnesotans deserve this meaningful action because they deserve to be feel safe in their schools, universities, shopping malls, places of worship and every other public space.”
Rep. Ward encourages constituents to contact her on any issue. She can be reached by email at rep.joann.ward@house.mn or by phone at 651-296-7807, and encourages constituents to sign up for periodic email updates at her House website, located at www.house.mn/53a.
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