NEWS

While we believe in the inherent right of people to legally do what they like with their firearms, we would encourage those who are looking to remove firearms from their homes to be aware that police departments across the state will take unwanted firearms at any time.

We would encourage people to look to organizations like “Hold My Guns”, whose mission is to partner with FFLs (Federal Firearms Licensees) across the United States to provide voluntary firearms storage during times of crisis or personal need, instead of destroying their firearms.

Unfortunately, the Maine Gun Safety Coalition is more interested in destroying firearms and ammunition than they are in providing actual gun safety education in our state.

It is our hope that people will be aware of their choices, especially in the cases of antique firearms and those with historical importance, and know that if they do choose to remove their firearms from their homes, destruction is not the only answer. 

Fundraising Update

It has been just under 72 hours since we officially started fundraising to combat 72-hour waiting periods in Maine.

Your response has been amazing. From donations ranging from $10 a person to $10,000, we are off to a fantastic start.

We have had more new memberships in the first 6 days of May than we did in all of April, including 8 new Life Memberships. Thank you.

We genuinely appreciate your support, and take your comments such as “Maine is counting on you” to heart. We also know that the economy makes it difficult for many people to have anything extra leftover at the end of the month, so when we receive comments of “It’s not much but it’s all I have”, we know this is something you believe in.

This is no small thing. We are truly in a battle for the heart and soul of not just our State, but our Nation.

We take this very seriously and will see it through to the end-but we need your help.

If you are able to donate, click HERE to donate online or mail to:

Gun Owners of Maine

PO Box 5011

Augusta, ME 04332

Put "legal fund" in the memo.

(Donations to the SAM Legal Fund go to the same cause- we are in this together)

To answer some questions that have come in over the last few days:

Why aren’t you including background checks in your lawsuit?

We will be pursuing a repeal of the expanded background checks, changes in the yellow flag law as well as repealing the paramilitary training bill that was passed last session in the 132^nd Legislature, which will begin in January of 2025.

Why aren’t you doing a People’s Veto?

As explained in our previous email, a People’s Veto is not only millions of dollars, it can be overturned by the next legislature. We want a lasting decision not only for Maine, but for other states as well.

Why aren’t you partnering with National Groups?

We anticipate partnering with a national entity at some point in our litigation. National partnerships often come with strings and a loss of autonomy that we need to weigh carefully as we endeavor to best represent the interests of our members and our state.

What can I do if I can’t donate money?

• Tell your friends, families, and neighbors. Share on your social media. Let’s keep this topic at the forefront of people’s minds through the election in November.
• Make sure your local FFL/Gun Shop is aware of what is going on.
• Be on the lookout for upcoming fundraisers in your community.
• Reach out to your legislators and make sure they know that you will be looking at how they voted on Gun Rights this election season. Support pro-gun rights candidates however you can.

If you have any questions at all, please don't hesitate to ask.

The Gun Owners of Maine Board of Directors

If you have any questions email info@gunownersofmaine.org 

Legislative Update

Governor Mills has Vetoed the Machine Gun Re-Definition Bill/Forfeiture of Firearms bill and allowed the 72-Hour Waiting Period to go into law without her signature. 

Thank you for your time and efforts in writing and calling the Governor, your State Representatives and State Senators regarding the gun bills that were sent to the Governor this session.

There is good news and bad news.

Governor Mills has vetoed the bill that would have altered our forfeited firearms law as well as amended the definition of a machine gun in Maine, outlawing bump stocks and common trigger alterations used by thousands of Maine gun owners. We would strongly encourage you to reach out to your legislators and ask them to sustain this veto.

It also brought to light the fact that the definition of Machine Gun in Maine Statute is out of step with the Federal definition and, as currently worded, could be construed to mean some commonly used shotgun ammunition. We will be working with legislators next year to make sure that the definition is logical and in step with Federal law.

The bad news is, Governor Mills has allowed the 72-hour Waiting period to go into law without her signature. This is no different than if she had signed the law.

Maine residents elected the Governor to make hard decisions, and she took the cowardly way out and allowed a terrible, unconstitutional bill to go into law.

This bill was defeated in 2023 and was brought back to life unethically during the emergency session by altering a few words, was passed using questionable vote-pairing in the Senate, and then will go into law without the Governor’s signature.

This doesn’t sound like a piece of legislation that the Maine people want.

We will be taking steps in the next couple of days to look into the best avenues for pursuing legal action.

Waiting periods are arbitrary impositions on law-abiding citizens that do nothing to curb the activities of criminals.

They are an infringement on our inherent rights and are in direct defiance of both our Maine and United States Constitutions.

We raise money by raffling firearms, selling various merchandise, and offering memberships to those interested in supporting the defense of gun rights in Maine.

The passage of 72-hour Waiting periods is cause for the utilization of those resources.

We will keep you updated on our progress, and thank you for standing with us in our fight to preserve gun rights in Maine.

Laura Whitcomb will be on the George Hale Ric Tyler show on 101.3/103.9 WVOM at 6:08am on Tuesday, April 30th to discuss these events.

Updates on Legislation: What You Can Do

In the last week we have seen 72-Hour Waiting Periods, forfeiture/destruction of State Seized Firearms with a sneaky amendment to outlaw bump stocks and binary triggers among other things, as well as modifications to our current "Yellow Flag" law and what amounts to Universal Background Checks pass through the House and Senate, and await action by Governor Mills.

The best thing you can do right now is contact Governor Mills' office and ask her to veto these pieces of legislation (see below for how to do this). The House nor the Senate have the numbers to override a veto. 

Despite the fact that her bill was heavily modified in committee and passed as an amended version, the chances of Governor Mills vetoing her own bill are slim. Yes, we would like to see the expansion of background checks defeated with a veto, but it is unlikely.

The Speaker's Red Flag bill never made it to the House or Senate for a vote. We feel strongly this is because it came out of committee with four reports, there was no consensus among anti-gun legislators, and would have been a bad talking point for them as we head into November's Election. This is a huge win for the pro-rights community, and is a thorn in the side of those seeking to strip us of those rights. 

72-Hour Waiting Periods passed both the House and the Senate, falsely labeled as a "Suicide Prevention" Bill. There were some excellent floor speeches by pro-gun legislators that I would strongly recommend you take a moment to listen to if able (two that are easily found are below, if you are able to listen to the whole discussion, there are so much more-if you need help navigating this just ask!). We are frustrated daily by the lack of majority representation in Augusta, but there are legislators that have fought along side us with what amounts to nothing short of awe-inspiring. Waiting periods, aside from being completely unconstitutional, make people defenseless, harm our economy, and will decimate gun shows and small business owners in our state.

Rep. Rachel Henderson on Waiting Periods

Rep. Katrina Smith on Waiting Periods

Destruction of firearms and alterations in the definition of Machine Gun to include commonly owned semi-automatic firearms modifications is not only a waste of perfectly good firearms, it is a stepping stone to a ban on "assault" weapons. This amendment brought to light the fact that Maine's current statute surrounding the definition of a Machine Gun (as assessed by attorneys specializing in firearms) could be construed to include shotguns/buckshot/snake shot. Yes, this law has been on the books for decades, but it is out of step with federal law and frankly, "intentions" of politicians who seek to remove firearms from the hands of law-abiding citizens is not something we trust. This definition needs to be amended and we will be seeking to do so next session.

CONTACT THE GOVERNOR:

Please reach out to Governor Mills online, by phone (207-287-3531) or using a resource such as the NRA's easy to use form and encourage her to veto these bills. Don't hesitate to use all three methods! While we would never intend to tell our members how to communicate with our lawmakers, we would strongly encourage your communications to be respectful. 

Legislative Update & Next Steps

On April 16th, the House of Representatives passed both the 72-Hour Waiting Period and Machine Gun re-definition bills by one vote each. 

As of this hour, because they have both already passed through the Senate, they now need to have an enactment vote in both the House and Senate.

Below, please find links to the current status of the gun-related bills before the House and Senate, in which you can find the roll calls of how each legislator voted.

It is important to recognize that, though in the minority, there are many pro-gun rights legislators that are standing strong for our rights in the House and Senate. If your legislator is among them, please take a moment to thank them for their support. When they are available, we will send some links to some of their floor speeches, they are worth listening to. 

LD 2224: An Act to Strengthen Public Safety by Improving Maine's Firearm Laws and Mental Health System  (Expanded Yellow Flag Law and Background Checks)

Status and Roll Call

LD 2283: An Act to Enact the Crisis Intervention Order Act to Protect the Safety of the Public  (RED FLAG)  This Bill was just reported out of committee on 4/16 and has not yet had a floor vote as of this hour.

LD 2238: An Act to Address Gun Violence in Maine by Requiring a Waiting Period for Certain Firearm Purchases (72-Hour Waiting Periods)

Status and Roll Call

LD 2086: An Act to Amend the Law Governing the Disposition of Forfeited Firearms (Machine Gun Re-Definition  Amendment) 

Status and Roll Call

LD 1696: An Act to Create a Civil Cause of Action for Persons Suffering Damages Arising from the Illegal Sale or Marketing of Firearm-related Products

LD 1696 failed to pass and is dead. This is good news.

Click Here to Read our heavily cited testimony.

The status of the bill, with applicable roll calls and submitted public hearing testimony can be found here.

As of this date, please direct your attention to the Governor and urge her to veto this bill. 

On a Saturday afternoon on a holiday weekend, the public hearing for the Red Flag legislation proposal was scheduled.

Click here to review the bill. 

FRIDAY, April 5th at 9:00am at the Maine State House, Augusta

Judiciary Committee Room 438

Please see images below for how to submit testimony online or to sign up to testify via Zoom at https://www.mainelegislature.org/testimony/

Online Submission:

1. Go to website
2. Choose Public Hearing
3. Choose Judiciary Committee
4. Choose Date: April 5, 2024
5. Choose LD 2283

Given the uncertainty of the weather at the end of the week, we would recommend submitting testimony online even if you plan on testifying in person.

We anticipate the usual shortened testimony time, 2 minutes, but have not yet been made aware of how testimony will be handled.

Your testimony does not have to be lengthy: just state who you are/where you live, your opposition, and a brief statement of why.

Bill Language

An Act to Enact the Crisis Intervention Order Act to Protect the Safety of the Public

AKA - An Act to Remove Firearms without Due Process

The Governor's bill came out of the Judiciary Committee with an 8-6 Ought to Pass Majority Report.

This is the content of the bill, with the amendments put forth by the Governor's Office. The image below is an important amendment that was made in committee by Representative Moonen who stated with his motion, " I think my concern is that there are private groups on social media that can have tens, tens of thousands, or hundreds of thousands of members, but because it's a private group I'm concerned that the words 'to the general public' would not incorporate those groups, and so I want to strike those words so that anything that's broad cast to a very substantial number of people , rather than a direct message to one person, would be covered."