By Journalist Kaytly Clift (OSU)
SNU-501 is a bill stating that a person residing in Oklahoma must not transfer ownership or personally own a semi-automatic firearm without first obtaining a proper license, pass a background check and register the firearm under the Oklahoma firearm registry.
Rep. Noelle Brezillac (SNU) had the privilege of presenting SNU-501 during the Freshman Bill, which
is a bill that is run by the one star and zero star delegates of the House of Representatives.
Rep. Xavier Williams (SE), while supportive of gun control, raised concerns about the bill.
“In my opinion, this bill is just unspecific, and I think it is unnecessary because the bad people that this law is targeting to stop from buying guns are going to get guns anyway,” Rep. Williams said. “All
this is doing is adding more paperwork for the honest citizens, so I do not think that this bill
is actively helping in this instance.”
Rep. Williams added, “I also think the bill is unspecific in regard to having background checks, and they don’t give any information on what those look like.”
Although the bill failed in chambers, many delegates were in support of the law and encouraged gun control.
Rep. Grace Standridge (SE), who supports gun control, spoke in favor of the bill.
“I like how it is a crime punishment for owning a gun, and I don’t think extra paperwork is necessarily a bad thing,” Rep. Standridge said. “I do think that there are a few loopholes and weaknesses in the bill, but I have seen a few amendments going around to fix these issues, such as the amendment to fix the penalties section.”
The bill failed in chambers with a vote of 20-31. This Freshman Bill struck big conversation within the one star and zero star delegates and was a successful way to start the afternoon legislative session.