The proposed gun-control legislation of State Sen. Matt Dolan, R-Cuyahoga, has drawn opposition from the Buckeye Firearms Association, which represents 4 million gun owners in Ohio.
Dolan sponsored the "Strong Ohio" gun-control bill, which failed to pass during the previous legislative session. The senator has now introduced SB 357, which the association said contains some of the same ideas of his previous bill. It called the bill "Strong Ohio 2.0."
"To be fair, Sen. Dolan has voted for a variety of pro-gun bills," Dean Rieck, executive director of Buckeye Firearms Association, said in a press release. "And in his campaign to win a seat in the U.S. Senate, he promised to champion gun rights. Unfortunately, instead of protecting or advancing the Second Amendment, he chose to sponsor a massive gun-control bill. And he lost his primary."
SB 357 includes three provisions that Rieck said should concern Ohio gun owners:
– A red flag law allowing authorities to seize firearms from individuals who have not been found guilty of a crime.
– A rule prohibiting law-abiding individuals who are 18-21 years of age from purchasing firearms without a "co-signer."
– Potential civil liability for legal, personal firearm sales, which Rieck said could lead to universal background checks.
"We believe authorities should enforce current law and target those who are actually committing a violent crime, rather than focusing on inanimate objects and targeting gun owners, the vast majority of whom will never commit any crime at all, let alone a violent crime," Rieck said.
Buckeye Firearms Association aims to defend and advance the right of citizens to own and use firearms for all legal activities, including self-defense, hunting, competition and recreation.
