While several bills related to the regulation of firearms are moving ahead, a bipartisan bill to increase penalties for repeat juvenile offenders when it comes to gun crimes has not received a public hearing

Carleen Johnson
The Center Square Washington

Friday marks a critical cutoff date for bills in the Washington State Legislature. This means bills must pass through a policy committee in their house of origin, or they are likely dead for the year.

While several bills related to the regulation of firearms are moving ahead, a bipartisan bill to increase penalties for repeat juvenile offenders when it comes to gun crimes has not received a public hearing.

House Bill 1536 would allow teens to be held in custody longer if they’re convicted of gun possession three times. Under current state law, it takes five possession convictions before juveniles can be held for longer than 30 days in a state juvenile rehabilitation program.

“These juveniles with repeated violations of the law, have not been facing any jail time until after their fifth violation,” Kirk Evans, president of U.S. LawShield, a national firearms legal defense program, told The Center Square.

HB 1536 has been sent to the House Early Learning & Human Services Committee but is not scheduled for a public hearing. The Center Square reached out to the office of Rep. Steve Bergquist, D-Renton, who chairs the committee, to find out if the bill would get a hearing but did not receive a response. 

Other firearms-related bills are at various stages of the legislative process.

House Bill 1163, a bill to require a permit to purchase firearms and safety training before purchase, passed out of the House Civil Rights & Judiciary Committee and was referred to the Appropriations Committee but has not yet been scheduled for a subsequent hearing.

Evans also voiced concern about House Bill 1152, which would require safe storage at home or in a vehicle. HB 1152, sponsored by Rep. Beth Doglio, D-Olympia, passed out of the House Committee on Civil Rights & Judiciary and has been sent to the Rule Committee.

“In your vehicle, if you leave it [firearm] unattended, it has to be in a secured, hard-sided locked case [that] is attached to the vehicle,” explained Evans. “And it specifically says this cannot include the center console unless it’s specially adapted for these purposes.”

Evans said a gun left unattended in your home would have to have a locking device like a trigger lock or be put into a gun safe.

“Imagine if your car gets broken into and the gun is stolen; you’re wondering should I report it?” queried Evans. “You’re wondering, did I do the right thing, and did I have it stored correctly? Can I even call the police or am I going to be turning myself in for wrongful storage? That’s the dilemma for gun owners.”

The Alliance for Gun Responsibility supports the bill. 

“Properly storing firearms in secure safes or lockboxes can prevent them from being stolen and ending up in dangerous hands, contributing to illegal firearm trafficking,” the organization’s website states.

A firearms and ammunition tax bill appears to have stalled.

“The one that’s going to impact almost everybody who wants to buy a firearm or already has a firearm and wants to shoot a firearm is the proposed tax on firearms, parts and ammunition,” Evans said.

House Bill 1386 received a public hearing in the House Finance Committee on the second day of the session, but no vote was taken. The tax would fund violence intervention programs and support victim services.

“Under this bill, all of that [firearms, parts, and ammo] will face an 11% tax,” Evans explained. “Before it goes into effect, it will lead to some hoarding of last-minute purchases and actually drive business across state lines where you can get these items without having to pay the tax.”

Senate Bill 5098, sponsored by Rep. Javier Valdez, D-Seattle, would ban gun possession in parks, playgrounds, and county fairs.

Evans said the concerning language in the bill states guns are banned “where children are likely to be present.”

“I am out in some gigantic state park, and you have no idea that twice a month, a school group does a tour out here, and suddenly you find out that you’re now in violation of the law,” he said.

The bill is scheduled for a public hearing before the Senate Committee on Transportation on Feb. 24 at 1:30 p.m.

House Bill 1132 would restrict bulk purchases of firearms and ammunition.

“It basically would prohibit retailers from selling more than one firearm per month to individuals,” Evans noted. “So, basically people would just drive around from one gun store to another to buy their firearms.”

The same bill would also restrict ammunition sales.

“It says you can’t buy more than a thousand rounds of ammo in a month,” Evans observed. “To non-gun folks, that sounds like a lot, but many basic handgun courses make you bring a thousand rounds of ammo with you.”

The Alliance for Gun Responsibility calls the measure, “a straightforward approach to prevent gun trafficking.”

Sponsored by Rep. Darya Farivar, D-Seattle, HB 1132 passed out of the House Civil Rights & Judiciary Committee and was referred to the Rules Committee.

This report was first published by The Center Square Washington.