Support SB 1071: Enforce the Second Amendment in West Virginia

Why it Matters

URGENT: SB 1071 has passed out of committee, and is now pending in the Senate. Contact your state legislators, and urge them to support this important resolution!

West Virginia state Senator Chris Rose (R-Monongalia) has introduced Senate Bill 1071 (SB 1071), the “Public Defense and Provisioning Act.” If enacted, it would create the “Office of Public Defense” within the West Virginia State Police for “the procurement and sale of machine guns to qualified members of the public.” In other words, the new Office of Public Defense, created by this legislation, would be in charge of buying machine guns and selling them to “qualified” members of the public in West Virginia.

Currently, there are strict federal laws, such as the National Firearms Act and the Hughes Amendment, that make it very difficult and expensive for ordinary citizens to buy or own machine guns. However, there is an exception to these federal laws that allows states to buy these weapons. Once purchased by the state, this proposed state law would allow the machine guns to be sold to the public.

These firearm transfers would utilize the explicit exception in 18 U.S.C. §922(o)(2)(A) of the Hughes Amendment, which does not apply to “a transfer to or by, or possession by or under the authority of, the United States or any department or agency thereof or a State, or a department, agency, or political subdivision thereof.”

This bill confronts unconstitutional federal infringements on the type of firearms citizens can possess under the National Firearms Act of 1934 and the Hughes Amendment to the Firearm Owners’ Protection Act of 1986.

West Virginia State Director for Gun Owners of America Alex Shay wrote, “SB 1071 is one of the most important opportunities our state has had in a long time to restore freedom, strengthen our economy, and show the rest of the country what responsible lawful leadership looks like.”

Denying certain firearms to citizens while allowing the military and law enforcement to easily acquire them violates both the protections established by the Founders and the intent of the Second Amendment, creating the very imbalance they warned against.

Restoring access to bearable arms adheres to Second Amendment and honors the Founding principle that rights come from God, not government.

Urge your state legislators to support SB 1071 and support the God-given right to keep and bear arms in West Virginia.