'Ban Assault Weapons Now' starts Florida constitutional amendment push [View all]

[DonViejo]

Source: Politico




By MARC CAPUTO 03/14/2018 05:03 AM EDT

MIAMI — Led by the congressman who represents Parkland and a neighboring mayor, a new Florida political committee called Ban Assault Weapons Now is advocating for a state constitutional amendment to halt the sale of tactical semiautomatic rifles.

The committee has a dual purpose: support a proposed 2018 constitutional amendment under consideration by the state’s Constitution Revision Commission or, if the amendment is rejected by the commission, draft a new proposal for the 2020 ballot.

“I would love to get the chance to get this done as soon as possible,” said Rep. Ted Deutch, a South Florida Democrat who stepped into the gun debate’s national spotlight after the deadly Feb. 14 Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting in his district in Parkland. He’s leading the effort with Coral Springs Mayor Walter “Skip” Campbell.

The nascent effort picks up where Democrats fell short in the waning days of the state legislative session, when the response to the shooting dominated lawmakers’ attention. The Republican majority passed a law with unprecedented gun control —but not a ban on assault-style guns advocated by the minority party.

Read more: https://www.politico.com/states/florida/story/2018/03/14/ban-assault-weapons-now-starts-florida-constitutional-amendment-push-313343