By DANIEL J. CHACÓN AND CLARA BATES
The Santa Fe New Mexican
After being riddled with a slew of proposed amendments in a late-night committee hearing, the most contentious gun control bill of New Mexico’s 30-day session is all but dead.
One of the lead sponsors of Senate Bill 17, Sen. Debbie O’Malley, D-Albuquerque, said Tuesday the measure is unlikely to get another hearing after the House Judiciary Committee delayed a vote early Tuesday morning.
“There’s not enough time to hear it again,” she said.
“Of course, it’s disappointing that we won’t hear that bill,” O’Malley added. “But we’re going to keep trying.”
The House Judiciary Committee debated the bill — which would ban what it calls “extremely dangerous weapons” and add new regulations for firearms dealers to combat gun trafficking — from around 11:30 p.m. Monday to 12:40 a.m. Tuesday.
But the committee didn’t vote after another sponsor, Rep. Andrea Romero, D-Santa Fe, said she needed time to work through lawmakers’ proposed amendments.
The delay came after Miranda Viscoli, executive director of New Mexicans to Prevent Gun Violence, had warned the legislation was “legally vulnerable and likely to backfire.”
“By passing a ban this broad, we are handing the U.S. Supreme Court a perfect opportunity to deliver a definitive, nationwide ruling against state-level firearm restrictions,” Viscoli told The New Mexican last week.
“Beyond the legal risk,” she added, “the bill’s immediate effect will likely be a surge in panic buying of the exact weapons this bill is trying to limit.”
Viscoli said Tuesday passing gun violence prevention legislation is “never easy.”
“We thank the sponsors for their hard work and dedication to the safety of New Mexicans,” she said.
Romero said lawmakers filed at least eight amendments to the measure.
“We don’t know where the amendments came from yet at this point. If we can work with some of the sponsors on some of those, I think a few may be friendly,” Romero told members of the House Judiciary Committee during the late hearing.
The sale of certain semi-automatic rifles — including AK-47s and AR-15s — would be banned under the proposal. Firearms retailers also would have to abide by new regulations supporters said were aimed at curbing the illegal flow of guns.
Among those rules were requirements for tracking and reporting gun sales and installing security equipment, an employee minimum age and training mandates.
The Senate passed SB 17 earlier this month on a vote of 21-17. Three Democrats joined Republicans in voting against the measure: Sens. Joseph Cervantes of Las Cruces, Angel Charley of Acoma and Benny Shendo Jr. of Jemez Pueblo.
The bill was hotly contested and drew opposing rallies at the Roundhouse, one organized by the New Mexico Shooting Sports Association and another by Moms Demand Action and Students Demand Action.
Romero told the House committee around 1 a.m. Tuesday she would be working through the amendments later in the day.
“We’ve been evaluating a number of them,” she said.
By Tuesday afternoon, though, O’Malley predicted the bill was unlikely to survive. She said she would bring it back next year.
Romero did not return a message seeking comment.
Opponents called SB 17 an infringement on Second Amendment rights and an attack on small businesses.
Republicans complained the proposal targeted law-abiding New Mexicans.
“There are 9,600 private security officers in the state of New Mexico,” Sen. Nicole Tobiassen, R-Albuquerque, said in a video posted on the Senate Republican caucus’ social media accounts.
“If Senate Bill 17 passes, every single one of those security officers will have to be retooled, retrained, recertified, and it will cost private security business owners in the state $4.3 million,” she said.