Relates to prohibiting the possession of certain 50 caliber firearms

• Democratic1

◆ The sponsor's argument

Why Brian Kavanagh says this is needed

50-caliber styled weapons are some of the most dangerous in the U.S. military's arsenal and perhaps the most dangerous weapons legally avail- able in the state of New York. These extremely high-powered rifles are designed to kill human beings and disable machinery and materiel at distances of well over a mile. Due to the large size of bullet used by these rifles and the high velocity at which these bullets are fired, the rifle can be extremely accurate at long range when handled by an experi- enced shooter. While the Second Amendment protects the right to keep and bear arms, the Supreme Court has said that this right is "not unlimited." District of Columbia v. Heller, 554 U.S. 570, 595, 626 (2008). The court also recog- nized the historical tradition of prohibiting "'dangerous and unusual' weapons." Id. at 626-27. This legislation heeds the guidance of the Supreme Court by increasing the safety of New Yorkers while observing the protections of the Second Amendment. 50-caliber styled weapons are readily available to civilians in gun stores and through the Internet, leading to thousands of rifles having been sold throughout the country in the last two decades. Some weapons are so dangerous that we simply cannot afford to continue selling them in our state. It is exactly the benefit of 50-caliber weapons to the military that make them such a potentially dangerous weapon in the wrong hands. A weapon with the capacity to kill a human at over a mile, pierce body and vehicle armor, and destroy military and civilian infrastructure could cause consider- able destruction and havoc. Alarmingly, Federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) investigators have found that some of these weapons have ended up in the hands of domestic and international terrorist organizations, international drug traffickers, and violent criminals. Despite their versatility in war, these rifles have limited lawful purposes. They weigh between twenty and forty pounds and measure almost five feet in length. They are too large and unwieldy for effective home defense and too powerful and destructive for hunting. This bill will require the registration of all 50-caliber weapons in the state purchased before the effective date of the ban, will prohibit the sale of new 50-caliber weapons, and will prohibit other transfers of 50-caliber weapons. This legislation is necessary to protect our citi- zens and the law enforcement personnel who risk their lives to keep us safe. Past attempts in other places to limit the sale of 50-caliber weapons have been thwarted by gun manufacturers who have made slight adjustments to the weapons in order to bring them into compliance with the law. These modified weapons, however, are no less dangerous than their predecessors. In order to address this problem, this bill seeks to broaden the definition of 50-caliber weapons to include not only those weapons which fire a round that is 50-caliber or higher, but also all weapons which fire a round that generates 12,000 lbs of muzzle energy. The bill therefore effectively balances the competing interests noted by the Supreme Court in Heller by prohibiting new sales or transfers of 50-caliber rifles which are too high powered to be useful for any usual lawful purposes, like home protection, self-defense, or hunting.

This is the sponsor's own case for the bill, quoted from their memorandum. It is not Agora's description of what the bill does.