Signed into law by Montana governor Brian Schweitzer on April 15 was House Bill 246, which exempts all Montana-manufactured firearms and ammo from all federal gun laws. in other words… the FedGuv can ban “assault weapons” all they like, but if you live in Montana, and there’s a company in Montana that makes, say, Uzis or AK-47s, you can buy one free and clear and the FedGuv can go pound sand.
A personal firearm, a firearm accessory, or ammunition that is manufactured commercially or privately in Montana and that remains within the borders of Montana is not subject to federal law or federal regulation, including registration, under the authority of congress to regulate interstate commerce. It is declared by the legislature that those items have not traveled in interstate commerce. This section applies to a firearm, a firearm accessory, or ammunition that is manufactured in Montana from basic materials and that can be manufactured without the inclusion of any significant parts imported from another state. Generic and insignificant parts that have other manufacturing or consumer product applications are not firearms, firearms accessories, or ammunition, and their importation into Montana and incorporation into a firearm, a firearm accessory, or ammunition manufactured in Montana does not subject the firearm, firearm accessory, or ammunition to federal regulation. It is declared by the legislature that basic materials, such as unmachined steel and unshaped wood, are not firearms, firearms accessories, or ammunition and are not subject to congressional authority to regulate firearms, firearms accessories, and ammunition under interstate commerce as if they were actually firearms, firearms accessories, or ammunition. The authority of congress to regulate interstate commerce in basic materials does not include authority to regulate firearms, firearms accessories, and ammunition made in Montana from those materials. Firearms accessories that are imported into Montana from another state and that are subject to federal regulation as being in interstate commerce do not subject a firearm to federal regulation under interstate commerce because they are attached to or used in conjunction with a firearm in Montana.
Freakin’ AWESOME.
Now, in all likelihood, the FedGuv will oppose this. Which means at some point they might drop the BATF hammer on some schmoe who buys himself a weapont he FedGuv decides he shouldn’t have. And then off it goes to the Supreme Court.
Hopefully, more states will adopt laws like this. I can easily see Texas doing so, and hopefully Utah as well.
The new law has some other points, both good and bad:
Section 5. Exceptions. [Section 4] does not apply to:
(1) a firearm that cannot be carried and used by one person;
Translation: new crew served weapons. I can live with that.
(2) a firearm that has a bore diameter greater than 1 1/2 inches and that uses smokeless powder, not black powder, as a propellant;
Damn. And I wanted to get me a one-hundred-fifty caliber rifle.
(3) ammunition with a projectile that explodes using an explosion of chemical energy after the projectile leaves the firearm; or
No RPGs or exploding bullets. Too showy anyway. However, it looks like they left the door open for atomic and antimatter munitions.
(4) a firearm that discharges two or more projectiles with one activation of the trigger or other firing device.
No fully automatic weapns. This, sadly, is a disappointment.
Amazingly enough, I didn’t see much about this on the news. Anyone else?
6 Responses to “I *really* like this law”
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I’ve read about it here and there over the last month or two but I generally don’t watch the news (what’s the point?). Most of the commentary I’ve read on it suggests the motive behind the Montana legislation is to provoke a response and get the 2nd. nailed down once and for all instead of letting Zero, Pelosi, Feinsten, Boxer, and the rest of those idiots tap-dance around with the weasel words while they find away around it.
See, you’re going to need that inch an a half bore to hold a picogram of antimatter in a magnetic containment. Be kind of expensive per shot, and the gamma ray burst would be a problem. Be cool though.
I don’t think you could get to critical mass with a bore that small so conventional nuclear would probably be out.
Well, deer hunting with a 12 pound mountain cannon is out.
http://www.buckstix.com/howitzer.htm
Not because it has a 4.5 inch bore (and it uses black powder instead of smokeless) or that one person can load, aim, fire, recover, repeat (just a lot longer then with a crew ;). But because one person can’t carry it.
Now if you put a motor on the carrage wheels and guided it with your hands … would make an interesting court/ledgislature fight. 😉
http://www.buckstix.com/howitzer.htm
quite unhinged….
[the hunting part, not the howitzer part]
Not a tremendous amount of news coverage here in Montana either… at least in Great Falls. Having said that, the reason is probably because the local newspaper is a left wing rag, and the news stations are only a little more “balanced” in reporting the news.
> http://www.buckstix.com/howitzer.htm
That’s AWESOME. Next time some yammering nincompoop claims that “assault weapons” aren’t used for deer hunting…
As for it being a crew serve weapon… how about a black powder recoilless rifle? One of those could certainly be carried by a single person.