[A] landmark bill that would make a series of changes to the state’s gun laws has received final approval from the General Assembly.
Gov. Phil Scott, a Republican, says he intends to sign the three bills that introduce new restrictions on gun use and ownership.
The historic legislation was the subject of intense debate over the past seven days in the Democratically controlled Legislature. The House held two marathon sessions and the Senate engaged in contentious committee hearings and spirited floor debate.
The passage Friday of the sweeping changes to the state’s gun laws comes on the heels of final approval earlier in the day of two separate bills that allow police to seize firearms in dangerous situations, one in the Senate the other in the House.
On Friday afternoon, the Senate voted 17-13 to pass S.55, a bill that expands background checks, bans bump stocks, raises the age to buy a gun to 21 and sets limits on the size of magazines – 15 rounds for handguns and 10 for shotguns.
The bill, S.55, was initially meant to reorganize how the state manages seized and abandoned guns, but as a national movement to tackle gun violence has swept through Vermont, it has become the central component of the response from the state’s lawmakers.
The Senate Judiciary Committee on Friday morning moved the bill to the Senate with a recommendation to remove the magazine ban. That motion was rejected before senators approved the underlying bill.
The House gave preliminary approval to the bill last Friday and final approval Tuesday, both in floor sessions that spanned several hours and into the evening.
A main point of difference between the House and the Senate versions of the bill was the addition of the magazine limit provision, which was not included in the bill approved by the Senate earlier this month.
That change, as well as others, sent the bill from House back to Senate to determine if that body concurred with the amendments added to the bill.
S.55 is part of a package of gun legislation that is on the way to the governor. On Thursday, the House passed S.221, known as a “Red Flag bill,” which permits law enforcement to seize guns from a person deemed an “extreme risk” to themselves or others.
Also, Senate of Thursday approved H.422, known as “the domestic violence bill,” which sets in place a process for police to confiscate firearms from people cited or arrested on domestic violence charges.
S.221 received final approval in the House on Friday morning and H.422 passed a third and final reading later in the day in Senate.
Scott says he will sign all three bills into law after his attorneys review the legislation for possible technical errors.
This story will be updated.
