Posted on 03/29/2002 2:03:40 PM PST by gc4nra
Political Editor Randy Shandobil for KTVU Channel 2 News
Target practice could soon get a lot more expensive. Next week a Bay Area state senator will formally propose a five-cent-a-bullet sales tax. Not five percent, but a nickel for each and every round.
Shoot a small caliber weapon, such as a .22? That more than doubles the price of your ammo.
Sen. Don Perata/(D) Oakland : "I will be attacked by those who hate gun control. I know that. As soon as this airs, I am going to start getting nasty phone calls and email."
Senator Don Perata is a gun control crusader. But he says his tax idea is not meant to deter gun use, but rather to raise money to save California's hospital trauma centers, some of which are going under.
"Bullets cause injuries that are expensive to treat and generally speaking, the public is footing the bill."
Perata wants the legislature to put the tax idea on the November ballot.
Peter Buxtun/NRA Member: "This idea is stupidity."
National Rifle Association member Peter Buxtun says previous gun control measures by Senator Perata put many gun dealers out of business, and he says a nickel a bullet tax would just lead to ammo smuggling. Buxtun: "People would go to Oregon, they would go to Nevada and they would load up the trunks of their car or their whole van and bring tons of ammunition in."
At the Jackson Arms Shooting Range in South San Francisco today, most customers did not want to talk on camera... but everyone said the tax would be unfair. They don't shoot people, they shoot targets.
Sen. Perata: "I am sorry. You cannot screen them out. The same way that someone with a perfect driving record is going to be upset that they pay an added cost for emergency care."
Democrats control both the state senate and the state assembly, so Senator Perata is confident a majority of lawmakers will support the tax. But that doesn't mean it will qualify for the November ballot.
For a ballot measure to qualify, two thirds of the legislature has to say yes, not a simple majority.
Buxtun: "We'll absolutely fight this as hard as we can."
If it does qualify, it could become a hot button issue in the Governor's race. Aides to Republican Bill Simon, who earns an A rating from the NRA, say he would be against it. Governor Davis is taking no position yet. He has signed many gun control bills, but says he's against tax hikes.
-- Political Editor Randy Shandobil, KTVU Channel 2 News
© 2002 KTVU-TV
Do these petty state polidiots really think they can put up 500 yard security zones around all of themselves?
"Lock And Load!"
It has already been mentioned!
You, sir, just convinced me. Any good source online for ammo cans to store it in?
I heard the reason he carries is he is afraid he might get roughed up by "gun-nuts" because of his anti-gun stance. Kinda ironic in a scary kind of way. He'll take your guns from you so you are unprotected but he wants one "for protection".
You're right,but since my son works at a local gun store(outside the L.A.City limits), I get the family discount.
"Every drive buy shooting costs lives and tens of thousands of dollars! Are the gun nuts so heartless they think a nickel a bullet is too much to pay?"
Then next year, on a voice vote, it goes up to ten cents a round, then 25, then a dollar.
And of course, it will be a felony to possess an "unregulated" bullet.
I find it hard to believe that someone buying 22s in boxes of 500 could also claim that 100 rounds a Year is a reasonable usage rate. And no, we're not talking "tens of dollars" but "tens of thousands".
I believe that cigarettes cost something like 25 cents per pack to manufacture. The vast majority of the purchase price is tax.
You mean you don't believe him????< /sarcasim>
/1/ Tax new bullet sales into oblivion.
/2/ Make felons out of any "criminals" who evade the tax.
It's a win/win for the traitors to the Constitution.
I think I've heard of this a-hole before.
Isn't he the one to told a world class target shooter (a teenage girl) that she should move out of the state? (This happened after her .22 target pistol was classified an illegal "assault weapon" because the magazine didn't go inside the handle.)
What a jerk.
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