Tell the PA Senate to Find Gun Violence Solutions—Don’t Punish Cities for Taking Action

From CeaseFirePA (http://www.ceasefirepa.org):

More Pennsylvanians were killed with a gun in 2020 than ever before.

Harrisburg’s response last week: advancing a bill (HB 979) to allow the NRA to sue cities for trying to end the blood running in their streets. If it passes, cities could be forced to choose between passing live-saving policies and potential bankruptcy as they may have to pay the gun lobby’s legal bills.

We will not stand for it. The PA Senate is about to consider this legislation for passage at any moment. Go to https://ceasefirepa.salsalabs.org/hb969preemption/index.html to tell your Senator: “Find solutions to gun violence, not punish cities for acting.”

The debate we heard on this bill out of the Senate Judiciary Committee last week was gaslighting at its worst.[1] Senator Langerholc told critics there “was nothing to worry about” as long as new local laws are not passed. And that’s their goal–no action, state or local, to address a crisis that has someone shot every 2 hours in PA. He argued that gun regulations are the job of the General Assembly, yet they consistently prevent any basic reforms to stop the violence. For families mourning loved ones’ passing or struggling to pay medical bills, these political games are of very little comfort.

This isn’t a hypothetical worry. Before this type of law was passed the last time, communities all across the Commonwealth passed great local policies to address gun violence at its root causes, before facing attack. This latest legislation would not only prevent real local progress – it would risk financial ruin of any municipality that even tried.

Philadelphia may have the financial resources to take on the risk, or find the risk worthwhile if only to stop the bloodshed. But what about Erie where shots fired rose 80% last year? Or Harrisburg where homicides have already reached a 30 year high?

Each city should be able to explore gun safety policies that work for their communities without risking financial ruin. Their residents deserve that much. If the General Assembly isn’t going to do their job, they should at the very least stop making it more difficult for municipal elected officials to do theirs. 

Do your part today. This is so urgent. Click here to reach out to your lawmaker directly, and tell them to oppose HB 979.