Here’s How Connecticut’s Tough Gun Control Bill Compares to New Laws in New York and Colorado

Billy Hallowell
Heres How Connecticuts Tough Gun Control Bill Compares to New Laws in New York and Colorado
Heres How Connecticuts Tough Gun Control Bill Compares to New Laws in New York and Colorado

This February 4, 2013 photo illustration in Manassas, Virginia, shows a Colt AR-15 semi-automatic rifle a Colt .45 semi-auto handgun and a Walther PK380 semi-auto handgun and a copy of the US Constitution on top of the American flag. Credit: AFP/Getty Images

(TheBlaze/AP) -- With so much happening on the gun control front, keeping track of the different measures being proposed in states across the nation can be difficult. Now, new proposed restrictions in Connecticut after the December massacre in Newtown are expected to win approval Wednesday; these would be among the strongest such laws in the country.

Here is a look at how the proposals compare to laws passed this year in Colorado and New York:

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AMMUNITION MAGAZINES

Connecticut would ban the sale or purchase of ammunition magazines holding more than 10 rounds. The legislation allows people to keep high-capacity magazines they already own if they're registered with the state by Jan. 1 but limits their use to the home and a shooting range.

New York restricted ammunition magazines to seven bullets and gave current owners of higher-capacity magazines a year to sell them out of state. Colorado banned ammunition magazines that hold more than 15 rounds.

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ASSAULT WEAPONS BANS

Connecticut wants to expand its assault weapons ban, adding more than 100 types of weapons in addition to those that have more than one banned military-style feature.

New York also expanded its assault weapons ban. Colorado did not pass an assault weapons ban.

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BACKGROUND CHECKS

Connecticut would require universal criminal background checks for the sale of all guns as soon as the bill passes, closing a loophole in private sales of rifles and shotguns. Background checks also would be required to buy ammunition and magazines.

Colorado expanded background checks to private and online gun sales but did not require them to buy ammunition. New York expanded background checks to private gun sales and became the first state to require background checks to buy bullets.

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DANGEROUS WEAPON OFFENDER REGISTRY

Connecticut created what officials called the first statewide dangerous weapon offender registry in the nation. Individuals who have been convicted of any of 40 weapons offenses must register with the state for five years after their release.

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MENTAL ILLNESS

People involuntarily committed by court order to a hospital for psychiatric disabilities within five years would not be allowed to possess a gun, up from one year under current Connecticut law.

New York required mental health professionals to tell state authorities if a patient threatens to use a gun illegally.

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FIREARMS STORAGE

Connecticut wants to expand the legal duty to securely store a firearm to cover situations where a resident of the premises poses a risk of personal injury to themselves or others.

New York requires locked storage of guns if you live with someone prohibited from them because of a crime, commitment to a mental institution or court protection order and made the unsafe storage of assault weapons a misdemeanor.

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Connecticut's Gov. Dannel P. Malloy was expected to sign a wide-ranging bill that includes sweeping new restrictions on weapons and large capacity ammunition magazines, a response to last year's deadly school shooting in Newtown.

Following a total of more than 13 hours of respectful and at times somber debate, the House of Representatives and the Senate voted in favor of the 139-page bill crafted by leaders from both major parties in the Democratic-controlled General Assembly.

The bill passed 26-10 in the Senate and 105-44 in the House. Both were bipartisan votes.

Malloy's office said he would sign the legislation at noon Thursday during a ceremony at the state Capitol.

"I pray today's bill - the most far-reaching gun safety legislation in the country - will prevent other families from ever experiencing the dreadful loss that the 26 Sandy Hook families have felt," said House Majority Leader Joe Aresimowicz, D-Berlin, referring to the families of the 20 first graders and six educators killed Dec. 14 inside Sandy Hook Elementary School.