ALBANY, N.Y. — New York is calling it legislation that will “strengthen public safety,” but in reality, the bill signed by Governor Hochul on May 27 is not only a disarmament measure, it also attacks core concepts of free speech.
New York already has some of the strictest gun control laws on the books (including a ban on body armor) and is now imposing draconian measures on 3D printer manufacturers to install “blocking technology” to prevent home-style firearms manufacturing and even making possession of files (or code) illegal.
(Similar laws have advanced in California and Washington State, and the Third Circuit recently issued a decision in a lawsuit challenging a New Jersey statute on a related matter.)
The gun control measure was passed as part of Senate Bill S.9005C, a budgeting bill, making it a quasi-backdoor way to squeeze in the controversial, and likely unconstitutional, measure.
The bill forces manufacturers to embed government-approved censorship technology in 3D printers commonly sold over the counter to consumers. It treats software code, an expression of First Amendment rights, the same as regulated firearms, stating, “Any person who possesses digital firearm manufacturing code with the intent to illegally manufacture…is guilty of a Class A Misdemeanor.”
The measure also introduces and bans a new class of guns it defines as “convertible pistols” and outlaws handguns with a “cruciform trigger bar,” a design that is quite common among the most popular and legally owned firearms. This ban on handguns with a cruciform trigger bar is commonly referred to as a “GLOCK ban,” even though it is not limited by brand, and New York is not the first state to pass one. Other blue states have passed them (or are actively considering them) in the last year or two, and there are likely more to come.
(News2A contributor, Dan Wos, first brought the so-called “GLOCK ban” bill to our attention in February. Also related, the N.J. Attorney General is issuing subpoenas to GLOCK dealers to set the stage for a similar ban in the Garden State.)
The New York law calls for the state to create and maintain a library of “illegal” firearms and firearms parts blueprints and files, and concerningly (and perhaps illegally) provides a mechanism to outsource this to the private sector, including universities, by stating “…the division may designate another government agency or an academic or research institution in this state to assist with the creation and maintenance of the file library.”
The bill requires a working group to be convened within 90 days and within one year make recommendations for how to implement the blocking technology.
Nothing in the bill could stop a person from simply purchasing a standard printer from another state. In fact, the very idea of criminal intent is lost on the supporters of the bill who don’t seem to understand that criminals, by definition, ignore laws like these. “Criminals are always looking for an edge, so it’s no surprise that 3D-printed guns and do-it-yourself machine guns are increasingly turning up at New York crime scenes,” said John Feinblatt, president of Everytown for Gun Safety, in a statement that defies logic.
Gun rights watchdog groups, like the NRA-ILA, have closely tracked these bills and in recent statements seem to hint at forthcoming lawsuits:
Obviously, this bill raises a whole host of constitutional questions. New York State is no stranger to being sued over its unconstitutional gun laws, and NRA has already filed suit on these types of bills in other jurisdictions. It seems certain where this is headed now. Stay tuned!
