Illinois House passes assault-style weapons ban; bill now heads to Senate

The Illinois House of Representatives worked into the early-morning hours Friday to pass the Protect Illinois Communities Act, just more than six months to the day since the Fourth of July shooting in Highland Park.

Senate Bill 2226, which passed by a 64-43 vote, would ban the sale, manufacture, delivery and purchase of assault weapons in the state. It also would require those that already own any of the weapons listed to register them with the Illinois State Police within 300 days of the bill's effective date.

The bill is an amended version of the original assault weapons proposal — House Bill 5855 — which was introduced in December. It now heads to the Illinois Senate.

Related:Supporters of assault weapons ban in Illinois tell lawmakers bill doesn't go far enough

State Rep. Bob Morgan, D-Deerfield, spoke about the bill and fielded questions from Republican lawmakers over the two-and-a-half hours of debate on the House floor.

In his closing comments, Morgan talked about when he walked in the Fourth of July parade in Highland Park. The shooting which left seven dead and 48 injured was not "unique," which led Morgan to take up legislative action with the goal of preventing further mass shootings.

"I know this is a complicated issue that affects a lot of communities in a lot of ways," he said. "A lot of you have been directly impacted by gun violence, mass shootings, death by suicide, individual gun violence, and you have created this legislation by sharing your stories with me and us in this chamber."

Welch's amendments

Earlier on Thursday, Speaker of the House Emanuel "Chris" Welch filed an amendment to SB 2226, pertaining to a few excerpts of the Protect Illinois Communities Act.

Several supporters of the bill during committee hearings last month in Chicago suggested that the age to obtain a Firearm Owner Identification Card remain at 18, whereas House Bill 5855 would have increased that age to 21. Welch's amendment would maintain the age at 18 with parental consent.

Another concern brought by gun rights advocates during the prior hearings was the limit on the number of rounds per magazine. HB 5855 set that number at 10, which opponents to the bill noted was less than other states such as Colorado, which has set a 15-round capacity.

The amendments from Welch would not have Illinois match Colorado, but do up that number to 12 rounds per magazine. Those with magazines that exceed this round limit would have 90 days to either get rid of them or modify them to adhere to the 12-round-per-magazine standard.

Welch made a rather rare appearance before the House Executive Committee Thursday evening, flanked by Morgan and state Rep. Maura Hirschauer, D-Batavia, to discuss the reasons for the amendments.

"These are weapons that belong on a battlefield, not at parades, or parks, or schools, or churches," he said.

Welch stressed that the bill focuses on the ban on selling new assault weapons, whereas gun owners that already possess these weapons will be able to keep them as long as they report their serial numbers to state police. Those that claim the bill will "take away" their guns, he said, are spreading misinformation.

The matter has personal importance for Welch, who told the committee that his aunt was killed by someone using a firearm in 1985. His parents took in his three cousins following the shooting.

"Gun violence has changed too many families in this state overnight, in the blink of an eye," he said. "You can hear that story from so many people just sitting in this room. The time to act is now."

House Executive Committee

Republicans in the House Executive Committee hearing questioned both Morgan and Welch on what the bill consisted of and what it lacked.

Morgan told Assistant Republican Leader and state Rep. C.D. Davidsmeyer, R-Jacksonville, that the 90-plus weapons listed to be banned were selected primarily from the Federal Assault Weapons Ban in place from 1994 to 2004. Several weapons were omitted and added, such as the Smith & Wesson M&P 15, since they were introduced after the ban ended.

Davidsmeyer indicated support for a provision of the act which calls on the Illinois State Police Division of Criminal Investigation to "provide statewide coordination and strategy" in attempts to curb firearms trafficking. He, however, was not in favor of the bill in its entirety and voted against it both in committee and on the House floor.

A variety of shotguns, which he claimed were the most popular firearms in the state, is included in the list of banned weaponry. Davidsmeyer said this popularity will keep gun owners from registering their shotguns, while Morgan contended that a ban on shotguns was "simply not in this legislation."

"I think this is a bill drawing at straws, looking for a solution, creating a problem," Davidsmeyer said, "turning 99.9% of legal gun owners into illegal gun owners in the state of Illinois."

Fellow Republican state Rep. Amy Elik of Alton based the majority of her questions on what is not mentioned in the bill. PICA does not list anything pertaining to mental health assistance or boosting school security, but Morgan noted how the most recent state budget addressed both of those items.

Morgan added that the legislation does not define weapons used for hunting, under rule by the Illinois Department of Natural Resources, as assault weapons. Therefore, "No weapon is being taken away in this legislation," he said. "Every single firearm that has been legally purchased can be retained, so long as they follow their existing law-abiding responsibilities as a FOID owner."

The measure passed along party lines 9-to-5 and headed to the Illinois House of Representatives.

Pritzker in the House

About 11 p.m. Thursday, the House took up floor debate on SB 2226. The matter brought Gov. JB Pritzker, who had advocated for a ban throughout his eventually successful gubernatorial campaign, to the Capitol.

The governor released a statement following the vote, thanking the Legislature for its passage of this bill and an amendment to Senate Bill 1543 regarding expanded abortion and gender-affirming care services.

"The people of Illinois send us to Springfield to tackle tough issues and these bills are historic steps in the right direction," Pritzker said. "I look forward to working with our colleagues in the Illinois Senate to get bills addressing these issues to my desk so I can sign them as soon as possible."

It also brought House Minority Leader Jim Durkin, R-Western Springs, to the forefront. Previously reported to be among the few Republicans that could support a ban, the House vote revealed that he was.

"I say enough is enough," he said, quoting the late U.S. Rep. Henry Hyde, R-Illinois.

Other House Republicans did not share the same view as Durkin, including his eventual replacement as House Republican leader, state Rep. Tony McCombie, R-Savanna. State Rep. Andrew Chesney, R-Freeport, called the position of Durkin "nonsense" prior to the vote.

"The weapon is not the issue, it's who is wielding that weapon," said McCombie, who will begin her term as Republican leader in the 103rd Illinois General Assembly.

What's next?

The last day of the lame duck session, when the current 102nd General Assembly will conclude, is Wednesday. As originally scheduled, this would be the final chance for the Senate to take up the measure.

Friday's Senate floor debate calendar had no mention of the bill, nor did the bill's listing on the General Assembly website provide any update on whether it will head to a committee hearing.

Senate President Don Harmon, D-Oak Park, said in a statement this morning that the Senate Democratic Caucus is reviewing the matter currently and will be returning to session on Sunday. The earlier calendar for the lame duck session did not list Sunday as one of the days the legislators would be at the Capitol.

Gun rights advocates have already indicated they will take legal action if the bill is signed into law by Pritzker, which he is expected to do if the Senate passes the bill.

Contact Patrick Keck: pkeck@gannett.com, twitter.com/@pkeckreporter.com.

This article originally appeared on State Journal-Register: Assault-style weapons ban passes Illinois House, heads to Senate