NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A6999
SPONSOR: Blankenbush TITLE OF BILL: An act to repeal section 265.37 of the penal law
relating to the unlawful possession of certain ammunition feeding
devices
PURPOSE:
To amend the penal law section 265.37 restricting more than seven rounds
of ammunition from being loaded into a lawful firearm and to permit a
lawful ten-round magazine to be loaded to capacity.
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section 1 repeals § 265.37 of the penal law.
Section 2 provides the effective date.
JUSTIFICATION:
This legislation repeals § 265.37 of the penal law which prohibits more
than seven rounds of ammunition from being loaded into lawful firearm
ammunition magazines. Adopted in 2013, this provision came about through
the enactment of the Secure Ammunition and Firearms Enforcement Act.
While New York Law permits the purchase, possession, and sale of ammuni-
tion magazines that hold up to ten rounds of ammunition, § 265.37
restricts these legal firearms from containing their actual capacity.
The act, and in particular, the seven-round restriction, violates the
Second Amendment of the United States Constitution, as well as the Civil
Rights law of the State of New York. The Second Amendment guarantees
individuals the "right of the people to keep and bear Arms." This amend-
ment has been interpreted by the Supreme Court to "guarantee the indi-
vidual right to possess and carry weapons in case of confrontation."
(District of Columbia v. Heller). The Court has also found that that
individual self-defense is the central component of the Second Amendment
right. (Heller). Furthermore, the Supreme Court has also held that the
Second Amendment is fully applicable to the states, thus New York State
may not impede the right of individuals to possess and carry weapons in
case of confrontation. (McDonald v. Chicago). The prohibition on fully
loading a ten-round magazine precisely impedes the right of individuals
to possess weapons in case of confrontation for self-defense. An indi-
vidual using a firearm in self-defense should have the most rounds of
ammunition available loaded in a lawful magazine in order to properly
defend ones-self. A person with a fully loaded magazine is better able
to defend herself from a violent attacker than a person who only has
seven rounds of ammunition available in the firearm before it requires
reloading. Lawful firearms used for self-defense are not dangerous and
unusual weapons that may be constitutionally prohibited by the states.
Furthermore, this restriction has a detrimental effect on all legal gun
owners, including hunters and sportsmen. The only exception to the
seven-round limit is for shooting ranges, where ten round magazines may
be loaded to capacity. This creates an environment in the state that is
hostile to gun manufacture and ownership. Section 265.37 impermissibly
restricts an individual's right to self-defense and creates an antag-
onistic atmosphere in this state towards legal gun ownership. Lawful
firearms containing lawful magazines should be loaded to their capacity.
This legislation restores the limit on rounds of ammunition that may be
loaded into a firearm. The restoration of this provision is consistent
with the Second Amendment's right to bear and the amendment's integral
protection of self-defense. As such, and for all the aforementioned
reasons, this legislation should be passed.
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
2015-2016: S.3698 Referred to Codes.
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS FOR STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS:
None.
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.
