Ohio Democrats argue their gun legislation bottled up by GOP in legislature
Gee --- this is nothing new -- sadly. What will it take for Republicans to realize we have a gun problem???
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Ohio’s Democratic legislators say they have repeatedly attempted to address gun violence, only to be shut out by the dominant pro-gun Republican majority in both the House and Senate.
Senate Minority Leader Kenny Yuko, D-Richmond Heights, and House Minority Leader Emilia Strong Sykes, D-Akron, pointed out Monday — following the killing of 10 people in a mass shooting in Dayton on Sunday — that Democrats have introduced six bills to improve gun safety.
Only Senate Bill 43, which would prohibit gun purchases by those convicted of domestic violence, has received a hearing, after it was introduced with bipartisan co-sponsors, Sens. Nickie Antonio, D-Lakewood, and Stephanie Kunze, R-Hilliard. And it got only that hearing, the leaders said.
A Senate spokesman said two other Democratic bills were offered hearings, but the sponsor wanted to wait until after passage of the state budget.
Yuko said in a statement: “Fear of violence at school, at the grocery store, on a Saturday night out with friends, robs us of our freedom. Ohioans are crying out for us to do something. Today, we are calling on our Republican colleagues to join us in saying ‘Enough is enough.’ We must take common sense action to protect our citizens.”
Atop the Democrats’ list of priority bills are the implementation of universal background checks on gun purchases and passage of a “red flag” law to allow judges to order the confiscation of guns from people found in a court hearing to be a danger to themselves or others.
Senate President Larry Obhof, R-Medina, said he is willing to grant Democratic bills a first hearing, which generally consists only of sponsor testimony, and “let the process run its course.” House Speaker Larry Householder, R-Glenford, did not respond Monday to requests for comment.
More: https://www.dispatch.com/news/20190805/ohio-democrats-argue-their-gun-legislation-bottled-up-by-gop-in-legislature