Seattle is under fire after its City Council passed a law to tax the sale of all firearms and ammunition.
The National Rifle Association with the National Shooting Sports Foundation and the Second Amendment Foundation levied a lawsuit against the city for what they are calling a Constitutional violation, saying the tax measures are a violation of Washington state law that prevents local municipalities from creating their own firearm regulations.
“Once again, anti-gun activists in Seattle have chosen to violate the Washington State Constitution and trample upon the Second Amendment rights of law-abiding citizens,” said Chris Cox, executive director of NRA’s Institute for Legislative Action. “They tried to enact similar regulations back in 2009 and lost. It’s a shame to see such a waste of public resources on issues the courts have already ruled to be a clear violation of state law.”
This isn’t the first Seattle has been sued for passing increasingly strict gun control laws. SAF founder and Executive Vice President Alan Gottlieb has taken the city to court before and come out on top, and plans to score another win during their next court session.
“We’ve been down this path before with Seattle when we sued them and won, knocking out their attempt to ban guns in city park facilities,” said Gottlieb. “They city does not seem to understand that no matter how they wrap this package, it’s still a gun control law and it violates Washington’s long-standing preemption statute.”
Lawrence G. Keane, NSSF Senior Vice President and General Counsel, felt compelled to join forces with the NRA and SAF, stating the new law is nothing more than a “poll tax.”
“NSSF has no alternative but to be an active party in this lawsuit against the City of Seattle’s attempt to interface in the lawful commerce in firearms and ammunition on the grounds that it violates Washington State’s preemption statute that blocks cities from regulating the sale of firearms on their own,” said Keane. “The Seattle ordinance is nothing but a ‘poll tax’ on the Second Amendment and an effort to drive Seattle’s firearms retailers out of business.”
(This article was a submission from freelance writer Brent Rogers)