Alabama Lawmaker Proposes Bill to Outlaw Bump Stocks

The U.S. Supreme Court overturned a federal regulation banning bump stocks in June, but state Rep. Juandalynn Givan, D-Birmingham, remains determined to pass a state-level ban in Alabama.

Givan has pre-filed a bill for next year’s legislative session that would make the possession or sale of bump stocks a Class C felony.

A bump stock uses the recoil action of a semiautomatic rifle to make it fire rapidly, similar to a machine gun. A gunman used rifles equipped with bump stocks to kill 58 people and wound hundreds more in Las Vegas in 2017, prompting the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) to ban the devices until the Supreme Court's ruling last month.

The Supreme Court, in a 6-3 decision, found that the ATF exceeded its authority when it classified firearms with bump stocks as machine guns and imposed the ban.

Givan said state lawmakers should propose legislation they believe is right, even if it conflicts with the Supreme Court’s position. She noted that many state lawmakers proposed abortion bans before Roe v. Wade was overturned.

“Regardless of what, we’ve got to still push the issue,” Givan said. “People said Roe v. Wade was legal. But that still hasn’t stopped states and individuals from filing legislation after legislation after legislation to strike it down.”

Givan has proposed the bump stock ban before, and passing it remains a longshot. Republicans hold three-fourths of the seats in the Alabama Legislature and have generally opposed gun restrictions.

On a related topic, the Alabama House passed a bill by Rep. Phillip Ensler, D-Montgomery, that would have banned Glock switches, devices attached to semiautomatic handguns that make them fire multiple rounds with a single pull of the trigger.

Ensler’s bill, which did not address bump stocks, died in the Senate. The Montgomery lawmaker said he would bring the bill back next year.

Glock switches are illegal under federal law, but Ensler and law enforcement officials who supported his bill said state law would improve enforcement efforts to keep the devices off the streets.

Givan, an attorney who has been in the House since 2010, said she is uncertain whether her bump stock bill will get serious consideration. She said the level of gun violence in Alabama, particularly in Birmingham and Montgomery, demands the attention of lawmakers.

Givan said some women in her district have told her they are afraid to go into their yards to tend their flowers.

“I’m going to keep the conversation going regardless,” Givan said. “Because maybe we got close last year. Maybe one year we’ll get even closer. But, unfortunately, the issue of these types of apparatuses should even be a debate.”