TOPEKA, Kan. — Kansas lawmakers have been warned. Attorney General Eric Holder is threatening to sue the Sunflower State over a new gun law just approved by lawmakers and Kansas Governor Sam Brownback. The new law affects the types of guns people are able to buy and bring to shooting ranges.
In effect, it says federal gun laws will not be enforced in the state of Kansas, and any federal agent who tries to enforce federal gun laws in Kansas will be arrested and face jail time and a fine. But federal officials say the new law is unconstitutional. They argue that federal gun laws always trump state gun laws. Because of this, a legal battle is brewing that could eventually find its way to the Supreme Court.
Kansas is the very first state to pass this type of law making federal gun laws null and void within the state’s borders. Alaska is close to passing a similar law. Missouri lawmakers are debating this issue in the Senate.
The reason Kansas passed this is to encourage companies that make guns and ammunition to move to Kansas because they would not be held to any federal oversight. And if a certain kind of gun or ammunition is banned by the feds but not in Kansas, then those manufacturers could continue to make it.
Will this new Kansas gun law hold up in court?
State lawmakers believe it will, while others believe it is indeed unconstitutional, so we’ll have to wait and see what the courts decide.
