Washinton

Required Safety Training for the Law Abiding - E2SHB 1163

The Bill is with the state senate for the first reading as reported March 11th. Prior, the bill was introduced January 20th, 2025

Washington anti-gun Democrats are pushing for a bill to have potential gun-owners complete safety training before purchasing a gun. Advocates of the Second Amendment argue that the proposal is discriminatory, unconstitutional, and ripe for legal challenges. To be eligible to purchase a gun, a prospective buyer would have to apply for a permit after presenting a certificate of completion of a state-certified firearms safety program within the last five years. The buyer could also be charged fees for the permit application. Washington’s firearms background check program administrators would have up to 30 days to issue or deny a permit, and they would have up to 60 days in cases where the applicant doesn’t have a Washington driver’s license or hasn’t lived in the state for 90 days. They would also have to present a complete set of fingerprints taken by a local law enforcement agency. 

Source: leg.wa.gov

Our Take: Laws of this nature create unnecessary obstacles for those looking to legally acquire a firearm. The added cost and time it takes could deter potential law abiding guns owners, while not doing anything to deter those who are willing to illegally acquire guns for criminal actions. With all of these extra steps, someone who needs a gun might not be able to get it in time. As always, we recommend everyone in our community be above reproach, but continue to push back against unconstitutional laws like this one.