MONTPELIER, Vt. (WCAX) – A gun bill advancing at the Vermont Statehouse is aimed at public safety, its sponsors say, following several high-profile incidents involving stolen guns and concerns about people who may be a danger to themselves or others.
“We are just adding tools to the prosecutor’s proverbial toolbox for more local enforcement,” said Rep. Angela Arsenault, D-Williston, the bill’s sponsor.
The measure, up for a vote this week in the House, would automatically make stealing any gun a felony. Another provision seeks to keep firearms from those who may be a risk to themselves or others because of mental health issues.
“People have been hurt or killed by individuals who had been adjudicated to be a threat of no harm to themselves or others,” Arsenault said.
Arsenault says mental health is often a component in homicide investigations. Another component of the bill would bar people from possessing a gun if a judge has ordered mental health treatment, even if that person is living in the community.
“We’ve been really careful here to respect individual rights and safeguard the public,” Arsenault said.
But some, like Chris Bradley with the Vermont Federation of Sportsmen, question why people well enough to be out in public should have their guns taken away. He said the issue raises deeper questions about whether Vermont has adequate mental health treatment options.
“Because we don’t have the facilities, at least in terms of mental health, what the state is really saying is, ‘Hey, we don’t have the facilities here, so we may be releasing people into the community who are questionable,’” Bradley said.
The bill also seeks to crack down on the sale of machine guns, which is already illegal federally without a permit. It also targets devices that can convert a semi-automatic gun to a fully-automatic.
The bill was voted out of the House Judiciary Committee on a party-line vote and may face the same margin in the House and Senate. It is not yet known how Gov. Phil Scott would act if the bill reaches his desk. He has been skeptical of many gun bills, but signed a multi-pronged gun restriction bill in 2018.
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