OUR LEGISLATIVE PRIORITIES
Discover our legislative priorities and help support their passage.
OUR PRIORITIES
Ghost Guns Ban
Currently in Michigan Senate:
Ghost guns are fully functioning untraceable firearms that can be constructed by anyone using unregulated parts, including “unfinished” frames or receivers. Ghost gun parts and kits are intentionally designed and marketed to circumvent regulations like background checks, lack serialization, and can be purchased by anyone, including minors, extremists, domestic abusers, and gun traffickers. Once assembled, a ghost gun looks, feels, and functions like a traditional gun, whether a handgun or assault weapon, and is just as deadly and dangerous in the wrong hands. End Gun Violence Michigan calls on our state to prohibit the manufacture, sale, and purchase of any firearm not imprinted with a valid serial number, and provide a path to serialization for existing ghost guns in the state.
Bump Stock Ban
Currently in Michigan House:
Currently in Michigan Senate:
While machine guns have been tightly regulated under federal law since the 1930s, bump stocks and other conversion devices are designed to skirt the law and mimic automatic gunfire and can increase the lethality of shootings. In 2019, the ATF finalized a rule clarifying that these dangerous devices qualify as machine guns under federal law and may not be purchased by civilians, but this is being challenged by the gun lobby and debated by the Supreme Court. Michigan lawmakers need to consider a policy to ban the sale, purchase and transfer of bump stocks, auto sears and other devices whose sole purpose is to enable semiautomatic firearms to fire like machine guns. With the power to allow semi-automatic firearms to fire hundreds of rounds per minute it is critical that our lawmakers do as much as possible to prevent these dangerous accessories from being able to do even more damage.
Gun Dealer Licensing
Too many families across Michigan continue to deal with the toll of gun violence, which is often a result of gun crimes. The reality is that illegal guns don’t start out that way, and gun dealers play a crucial role in stopping the flow of guns from legal to illegal markets. While most firearms are produced by licensed manufacturers and shipped to licensed dealers, some are very quickly diverted to traffickers and others prohibited from possessing firearms. It is the responsibility of those selling firearms to stop guns from being diverted to illegal markets and falling into the wrong hands. The ATF only inspects most gun shops once a decade, and that was before recent cuts to the ATF. With a state gun dealer licensing law, we enable our own law enforcement to inspect shops for signs of gun trafficking, as well as require security measures to prevent theft and training for dealers to identify traffickers and straw purchases. The majority of firearms used in crimes come from only a small number of bad actors. Passing a critical gun safety bill instituting a state dealer permitting system that would require retail firearm dealers to obtain a state permit to sell firearms in Michigan would hold bad actors accountable and encourage safety.
Advocate:
Personal Protection Order Reform
Currently in Michigan Senate:
A Personal Protection Order (PPO) is a court order to stop threats, violence, or harassment against an individual. In order for a PPO to be enforced, it must be physically served to the assailant. Currently in Michigan, a PPO can be served by law enforcement or independent contractors - for a fee. Each attempt to serve the PPO costs survivors money. These costs add up. The only way for survivors to have a PPO served for free is to ask a friend or family member, putting them at risk of immediate harm. Michigan is one of SEVEN states where survivors must pay money to have their PPO served if they don't want to risk their loved ones. We need legislation that PROHIBITS the courts or law enforcement from charging survivors for PPO services. These bills create a PPO service fund for law enforcement to draw from to pay for PPO services, instead of relying on survivors to pay. It also requires PPOs to be served on a specific timeline, and outlines proper communication with the survivor to ensure they know their PPO's status.
Advocate:
Join EGVMI at a Capitol Day!
Come with us to Lansing to speak directly with your elected officials on our policy priorities. Our Capitol days are a great opportunity to learn about our coalition member organizations, build community, and take direct action for gun violence prevention. We train all our volunteers on how to talk about our legislative priorities, how to tell your story, and how to facilitate a meeting so that you can be prepared for the role you want to take when talking to legislators. We also need your help to fill the room and show our elected officials that the movement to end gun violence is strong!
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Are you an organization interested in supporting our work? Reach out to info@endgunviolencemi.org for more information on how to join the coalition!