Town of North Hudson resolution opposing NY SAFE Act

RESOLUTION NO. 34 Of 2013

OPPOSING AND CALLING FOR REPEAL OF THE
NY SAFE ACT

Councilman Dresser offered the following resolution and moved its adoption:

WHEREAS, the right of the people to keep and bear arms is guaranteed as an individual right under the second amendment of the United States Constitution and that this right is regarded as an inalienable right of the people of the Town of North Hudson; and

WHEREAS, the lawful ownership of firearms is, and has been, a valued tradition in the Town of North Hudson, and the rights protected by the Second Amendment to the United States Constitution are exercised by many of our residents; and

WHEREAS, the people of the Town of North Hudson derive economic and environmental benefits from all safe forms of recreation involving firearms, including, but not limited to, hunting and target shooting while utilizing all types of firearms available under the Constitution of the United states; and

WHEREAS, the NY SAFE ACT was adopted by the New York State Legislature and signed into law in an unprecedented expedited fashion and completely devoid of any opportunity for our elected State Legislators to study, review and debate the legislation and without any opportunity for the public to comment upon the legislation or to have any input whatsoever upon the legislation; and

WHEREAS, requiring law-abiding gun owners to verify ownership of certain types of firearms every 5 years, in addition to registering them on their permits, which now also must be renewed every 5 years, does not increase the safety of the public and is unnecessarily burdensome to the residents New York State; and

WHEREAS, the only persons who will comply with the new high-capacity magazine ban are law-abiding citizens, leaving the same high-capacity magazines in the hands of those who choose not to obey the law; and

WHEREAS, requiring documentation of all ammunition sales in New York State, as provided for in this legislation is a significant unfunded mandate on businesses; and

WHEREAS, the legislation fails to offer any meaningful solutions to gun violence and places burdens squarely on the backs of law-abiding citizens; and

WHEREAS, while there are some areas of the legislation that the Town Board of the Town of North Hudson finds encouraging, such as addressing the glaring shortcomings in the mental health system, the strengthening of Kendra’s law and Mark’s law, as well as privacy protections for certain pistol permit holders, by-and-large, we find the legislation does little more than negatively impact lawful gun ownership;

NOW, THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that the Town Board of the Town of North Hudson does hereby oppose, and request the repeal of, any legislation, including the sections of the NY SAFE ACT (Chapter 1 of the Laws of 2013) which infringe upon the right of people to keep and bear arms; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the Town Board of the Town of North Hudson strongly encourages the members of the New York State Legislature to hold public hearings to address the issue of gun violence in a way that will produce meaningful results; and be it further

Resolved, that the Clerk of the Town Board of the Town of North Hudson be, and hereby is, authorized and directed to forward copies of this resolution to the New York State Association of Counties; the Intercounty Legislative Committee of the Adirondacks; Governor Andrew Cuomo; Senator Charles E. Schumer; Senator Kirsten E. Gillibrand; Congressman William Owens; Senator Elizabeth O’C. Little; and Assemblyman Daniel G. Stec

Seconded by Councilman Gero

ROLL CALL VOTE

Councilman Dresser Aye

Councilwoman Gokey Nay

Councilman Gero Aye

Councilwoman DeZalia Nay

Supervisor Moore Aye