NMSSA Legislative Alert 2/25/23

 

The schedule for the Monday meeting of the Senate Judiciary Committee was finally released this evening, two of the anti-gun bills in the committee will be heard on the 27th. HB9, the bill imposing criminal penalties on gun owners if a third-party minor uses their firearm to commit a crime or injure someone, will be heard. It already passed the House side, so it is making its way through the Senate side now. Here is a pre-drafted email you can send to your State Senator to oppose the bill. SB171, the bill banning the sale of certain semiautomatic pistols such as AR pistols, NFA firearms, and many types of commonly used ammunition, will also be heard in the Senate Judiciary Committee on Monday. Here is a pre-drafted email you can send to committee members asking them to oppose the bill. The committee meeting starts at 1:30pm, or half an hour after the floor session concludes, in Room 321 (Zoom Link). Additionally, SB114, a bill that we support, will also be heard in the Senate Judiciary Committee on Monday. The bill proposes a small, only a few words, change to New Mexico's concealed carry laws. After New Mexico's liquor laws were overhauled a few years ago, many restaurants that used to only sell beer and wine now sell other types of alcoholic drinks as well. This bill changes the language of Section 30-7-3 from: "a restaurant licensed to sell only beer and wine that derives no less than sixty percent of its annual gross receipts from the sale of food for consumption on the premises," to: "a restaurant licensed to sell spirituous liquors, cider, beer or wine that derives no less than sixty percent of its annual gross receipts from the sale of food for consumption on the premises." The bill strikes the word "only" and adds spirituous liquors and cider to the existing law. This change would allow individuals to once again concealed carry in restaurants they used to be able to carry in before the liquor laws were changed. SB44, the ban on carrying open or concealed firearms with 100ft of a polling place while voting is underway, will be heard in the House Government, Elections & Indian Affairs Committee on Monday the 27th at 8:30am in Room 305 (Zoom Link). The bill passed the Senate side, so it is now starting to move on the House side. You can use this link to send a pre-drafted email to committee members opposing the bill.