From our friends over at the VCDL:

We need every single person who cares about their rights to join the VCDL and become active this year in the elections. We can’t defend ourselves without everyone getting involved!

Today, and as expected, Governor Northam signed some of the gun-control bills on his desk into law and made some changes to others.  The state legislative tracking system has not been completely updated as of the time I am writing this, so there aren’t enough details on the modified bills to comment on them yet.

Most of the bills signed today will become effective on July 1, 2020, but a few will become effective on January 1, 2021.

Details of all the gun bills from the 2020 General Assembly session, including the plethora that were killed, will be summarized in an alert toward the end of the month.  For bills that are signed into law, the details will cover the date the bill becomes effective, exactly what the bill does, and how the final bill changed from its original language (as passed, most of the gun-control bills were softened).

I think many of you have forgot about some of the horrendous gun-control bills that died, such as almost eliminating indoor ranges, as well as some outdoor ranges.  How about eliminating reciprocity with 25 or so states?  The list goes on.

Have no doubt, as I will show in that gun-bill summary, VCDL’s Lobby Day, Second Amendment Sanctuaries, and your calls, emails, and letters absolutely had an effect in dulling the sword of tyranny.

Here are the bills that were signed into law:

* Universal Background Checks on bonafide private sales of firearms

* Red Flag law (“extreme risk protection order”) with some additional protections

* One handgun a month for those without a CHP

* Reporting lost or stolen firearms within 48 hours (increased from 24 hours)

* Increase in penalty for someone under 14 years old getting reckless access to a firearm (becomes a class 1 misdemeanor).  Down from a felony and someone under 18 years old.

These two bills were amended and we have not seen the final language yet:

* Local government can control guns in certain areas, such as government buildings

* A person with a permanent protective order cannot possess guns until the order expires or is revoked.

VCDL is polishing up lawsuits on some of these new laws and the lawsuits will be filed soon.

The last election gave us a bad hand to play this year and next.  We need to fix that.  Elections are in 2021 and the entire House is up for grabs.  This ship can be turned around if gun owners all do their part, beginning with voting in every election, voting for freedom, and actively supporting pro-liberty candidates.

And don’t forget: the bad gun-bills passed this year and next can be repealed in the future.

This is a war, not a skirmish, and it will be going on for a long while.  It is a fight for the soul of this great Commonwealth and of the Country.  If we give up, or fall into complacency, the bright light of freedom that is Virginia and America will dim and then go out.  We must remain positive, strong, focused, active, united, and determined.  We cannot, and will not, hide in a corner while the forces of tyranny try to strip us, and future generations, of our liberty.

Stay tuned for the next volley from our side.

-VCDL President Phil Van Cleave