Minnesota GOP Blocks Proposed Semiautomatic Firearm Ban in Legislative Committee Showdown

The Minnesota House Committee’s decision on Tuesday afternoon resulted in the failure of a proposed ban targeting AR-15s and a wide range of other semiautomatic rifles and pistols.

The outcome of the vote, as reported by FOX 9, was a 10-10 deadlock, preventing the ban from moving forward.

Prior reports from Breitbart News highlighted that the proposed legislation aimed to prohibit not only the ownership and transfer of AR-15s but also included a wide array of other semiautomatic firearms. The ban extended to the possession of specific models, such as the Colt AR-15, along with numerous other rifles and pistols.

The proposed legislation did offer a grandfather clause, which would allow current owners to retain their firearms by acquiring a “certificate of ownership.” This certificate required owners to agree to specific storage methods for these firearms within their homes. Additionally, owners who kept these grandfathered semiautomatic weapons would have to allow law enforcement officers to inspect their homes to ensure compliance with these storage mandates.

The Minnesota Gun Owners Caucus zeroed in on the gun storage compliance checks, writing, “It requires you to submit to warrantless police inspections of your home to keep what you own. Because nothing says ‘public safety’ like armed raids to check your gun safe.”

The National Association for Gun Rights applauded the ban’s failure in committee and made clear they will fight any attempt to sneak the gun control across the finish line via other pieces of legislation: “[The] unconstitutional attacks on the 2nd Amendment were shut down in committee, and we commit to continuing to shutdown any attempt… to sneak them into other bills.”