Although we already declared “AR sovereignty “ on gun laws, today we passed HB1390 which declared all federal gun laws “null and void” unless the #arleg “ratifies” them. Wait till cities and counties find out this is a thing. #SineDieAlready
— Jim Hendren (@JimHendren1) April 21, 2021
Yeah, they did this. The vote was 27-6, with 1 not voting.
Small consolation: The Senate passed over today HB 1386, another bit of gun-waving. It would make it a crime for a state law officer to enforce a federal rule or law passed after Jan. 1 of this year and direct the attorney general to defend any Arkansas resident charged with such a federal crime.
I kid you not.
HB 1390, by contrast, merely bars enforcement of federal gun law by local and state agencies and prevents them from aiding federal agencies, unless the legislature approves the laws. The feds have been great assistance to local agencies in going after criminals in Arkansas, by the way.
It is a sweeping general prohibition:
A statute, regulation, rule, or order that has the purpose, intent, or effect of confiscating any firearm, banning any firearm, limiting the size of a magazine for any firearm, imposing any limit on the ammunition that may be purchased for any firearm, or requiring the registration of any firearm or its ammunition infringes on an Arkansan’s right to bear arms in violation of the Second Amendment to the United States Constitution and, therefore, is not made in accordance with the United States Constitution, is not authorized by the United States Constitution, is not the supreme law of the land, and, consequently, is invalid in this state and shall be considered null and void and of no effect in this state
There’s no enforcement mechanism. Kevin Smith, the mayor of Helena-West Helena, has vowed not to obey it. For one.
Will the governor veto it? He’s expressed reservations. Will it matter if he does?
My question: Will this make bazookas street-legal in Arkansas?