Thursday, March 28, 2013

Smith Enterprise Halts Sales to California State Agencies and Law Enforcement, Stands With the People of California



Last month Smith Enterprise halted sales of all SEI products to law enforcement agencies based in New York State due to Governor Cuomo’s newest round of anti-gun legislation in the so-called "SAFE Act". Last week Smith Enterprise did the same with regard to Colorado. Today Smith Enterprise is suspending sales of all products to all state and local law enforcement agencies in the state of California, because of proposed anti-gun legislation making its way through the State Legislature.
The California legislative session for 2013 has introduced a dozen pieces of antigun legislation in the latest effort to criminalize California gun owners and it is enough to raise the ire of Ron Smith, the President of Smith Enterprise.
Smith said today, “These anti-gunners in California are delusional. They want their constituents to believe that passing more gun control laws in addition to the hundreds that they have in place will mean an end to violent crime. These proposed laws are aimed at the millions of law-abiding California citizens who have bent over backwards to comply with their state's ridiculous demands from past legislation.
"What criminal uses a device as ridiculous as a bullet button? What criminal is going to register firearms or apply for a permit to purchase ammunition? Not one. This is political grandstanding at its worst. Smith Enterprise will not be a party to the enforcement of these illegal laws which are not only unconstitutional, but only seek to punish and make criminals of the law-abiding."
California has long been a hotbed of anti-gun political activity. The Golden State was the first state to pass an assault weapon ban with the Roberti-Roos Assault Weapons Control Act of 1989 which outlawed over 75 specifically named semiautomatic handguns, rifles and shotguns. Not content to stop there, a decade later the state banned centerfire semiautomatic rifles, shotguns and handguns based on characteristics such as the presence of a pistol grip, thumbhole stock or flash suppressor. Other legislation passed in California outlawed rifles chambered in 50 BMG in 2004 and handguns that were not submitted for safety testing to the state's Department of Justice in 2001.
The first shot across the bow of freedom came from Assemblyman Rob Bonta (D-Alameda) who introduced AB174 that would have confiscated so-called semiautomatic assault weapons which were registered and in compliance with California's laws.  This onerous bill has since been amended to remove this wording, but it was the first of a dozen.
Assemblyman Nancy Skinner (D-East Bay) has submitted AB48 which bans the sale of magazine parts kits that can hold more than ten rounds, bans the sale or transfer of ammunition by anyone other than a licensed firearms dealer and requires that all ammunition transfers must be reported to the state.
Assemblyman Roger Dickinson (D-Sacramento) has submitted AB169 which bans the sale of handguns no longer on California's approved list.  This leaves gun owners who lawfully possess a handgun with no means of transferring or selling the handgun, if the handgun is not on DOJ's Roster of Handguns Certified for Sale. Dickinson has also introduced AB760 which imposes a sales tax of 5 cents per round of ammunition.
President pro temp of the California State Senate, Senator Mark Steinberg (D-Sacramento) wants to ban all semiautomatic rifles, including rimfire versions, as assault weapons. SB 374 would prohibit future sales and transfers in the state and require all such rifles to be considered so-called "assault weapons".
 Senator Leland Yee (D-San Francisco) has introduced SB47 which expands the definition of so-called assault weapons to ban the future sale of rifles that are equipped to use the “bullet button” or similar device and requires registration of all those semiautomatic rifles as “assault weapons” and subject to their restrictions. Also proposed by Yee is SB108 which requires mandatory locked storage of firearms within a locked house regardless of whether anyone is present.
Senator Kevin DeLeon (D-Los Angeles) has introduced SB53 which requires citizens to purchase an annual ammunition purchase permit and bans online and mail order sales of ammunition to California.
Senator Mark DeSaulnier (D-Concord) has introduced SB293, which would ban the sale of conventional handguns, if the state Department of Justice approves the sale of “Owner Authorized – Smart” handgun technology. DeSalunier would also seek to criminalize victims of firearms theft if they fail to report the loss of their firearm within 48 hours with SB299.
Senator Hanna Jackson (D-Santa Barbara) wants to change the technical definition of a shotgun with SB567. In Jackson's mind this would include a rifled bore and remove the definition of being made to fire from the shoulder. Her office has stated that this is to purposefully go after (in Jackson's words)the "exceptionally deadly" Rossi Circuit Judge revolving rifle chambered in 45 Colt, but also capable of chambering a 410 shotgun shell. The implications of this misguided law go far beyond any one rifle and could declare a host of handguns illegal under state law as short barreled shotguns.
Finally, SB396, introduced by Senator Loni Hancock (D-East Bay), would ban the possession of any magazine with a capacity to accept more than ten rounds, including currently legally possessed  magazines that were grandfathered under the State's ban in 1999.
When asked what Californians can do, Ron Smith gave a call to action: “Now is not the time for Californians to sit on their hands. It is us versus the gun grabbers. And Smith Enterprise hopes that the good people left in California make their voices heard by contacting these legislators as soon as possible via letters, phone calls, fax and email. If these politicians continue to support these ridiculous laws, Californians must make them pay for that support at the ballot box.”

The California legislature needs to know that this tyranny against law-abiding citizens needs to stop.
Californians can write their representatives here urging them to OPPOSE the anti-gun bills listed above. 

Californians can send a letter to all elected officials in California here.  When contacting legislators, readers can copy and paste all the bill information above to ensure the elected officials of California know which bills to OPPOSE.


Until California's government opens its doors again to 2nd Amendment Freedom, Smith Enterprise will be forced to apply the laws it passes to its government agencies.

Monday, March 25, 2013

Smith Enterprise Stands with Magpul, Stops Sales to Colorado Law Enforcement and State Agencies

 
Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper just signed 3 bills into law that place restrictions on the sales of firearms, magazines and ammunition. When Smith Enterprise received word of this, it was enough to make Ron Smith's blood boil.
 
Ron Smith, the President of Smith Enterprise is taking a stand against this legislation by suspending sales of his product to all state and local law enforcement agencies in the Centennial State, effective immediately. Ron Smith is also halting sales to Colorado law enforcement and state agencies in order to ensure the Colorado government practices what they preach.
 
Smith said today, “These politicians need to be held accountable for their actions and that rolls down to the people enforcing these laws. Our products will not be used against the law-abiding citizens of Colorado in the enforcement of these unjust laws which fly in the face of the US Constitution. Now let's hope that the good people of Colorado will punish Hickenlooper and other big government politicians who voted in favor of these measures at the ballot box and restore some sanity in their state.”
 
Hickenlooper’s office received some 3300 calls opposing these measures on Monday and Tuesday. The governor’s switchboard averaged one call every 18 seconds, but the voices of the law-abiding citizens of Colorado and pleas from numerous county sheriffs fell on deaf ears. Colorado, long known for its traditions of gun ownership and self-reliance, joined the ranks of New York, New Jersey, California, Massachusetts, Maryland and Illinois with their draconian laws.
 
One voice was a little louder than most, the voice of MagPul Industries, based in Erie, Colorado. The Veteran-owned business is known for producing top quality gear that works; from magazines to butt stocks to full-blown weapon systems. The laws, which take effect on July 1, would make MagPul’s P-Mags illegal to manufacture, let alone possess, in Colorado. Lawmakers offered a deal to include an exception for the company, but CEO Richard Fitzpatrick drew a line in the sand and turned it down. It was clearly an all or nothing gambit.
 
Fitzpatrick is planning on pulling up stakes and moving to greener pastures with his company, costing the State of Colorado 200 jobs and $10s of millions in tax revenue.
 
MagPul posted on the company’s Facebook page on Monday: “We will likely become a multi-state operation as a result of this move, and not all locations have been selected. We have made some initial contacts and evaluated a list of new potential locations for additional manufacturing and the new company headquarters, and we will begin talks with various state representatives in earnest. Although we are agile for a company of our size, it is still a significant footprint, and we will perform this move in a manner that is best for the company and our employees.”
 
Hinting at special interest groups from outside Colorado as being responsible for the legislation, MagPul wrote: “It is disappointing to us that money and a social agenda from outside the state have apparently penetrated the American West to control our legislature and Governor, but we feel confident that Colorado residents can still take the state back through recalls, ballot initiatives, and the 2014 election to undo these wrongs against responsible Citizens.”
 
MagPul’s first manufacturing effort outside of Colorado is planned to commence within a month with the company’s staple product: the P-Mag and they will be gone from Erie by year's end. In another bold move, MagPul has halted all sales to law enforcement agencies in states with prohibitive firearms laws. In a statement on the company's website Fitzpatrick wrote:
 
"With the fight in Colorado right now we do not have time to implement a new program, so I have suspended all LE sales to ban states until we can implement a system wherein any Law Enforcement Officer buying for duty use will have to promise to uphold their oath to the US Constitution - specifically the second and fourteenth amendments - as it applies to all citizens."
 
Last month Smith Enterprise halted sales of our products to law enforcement agencies based in New York State due to Governor Cuomo’s newest round of anti-gun legislation in the so-called "SAFE Act". Today we are taking that same stance alongside MagPul Industries and are, effective immediately, suspending sales of our products to all state and local law enforcement agencies in the state of Colorado.
 
When asked about Magpul, Ron Smith gave a call to action: “Magpul is on our team. It is us versus them (the gun grabbers). And Smith Enterprise doesn’t leave fallen comrades on the battlefield. We always pick up our wounded. We have Magpul’s back and hope Magpul finds a suitable place for their new operation. I hope more people support them by buying their products and making the politicians pay at the ballot box.”
 
It is in times like these when every manufacturer in the Industry has to take a stand for what is right in defiance of tyranny.
 
Smith Enterprise stands with MagPul and with the people of Colorado.