State lawmakers are poised to approve a gun control proposal that calls for banning “ghost” guns, updating the state’s “assault” weapons ban and setting new restrictions on the open carry of firearms.
On Wednesday, a six-member committee that includes Sens. Bruce Tarr, R-Gloucester, and Joan Lovely, D-Salem, announced that it had agreed to a final compromise bill that hammers out differences between House and Senate versions of the legislation.
The final bill is subject to an up or down vote in the House and Senate before heading to Gov. Maura Healey’s desk for consideration.
Legislative leaders who backed the proposal said while Massachusetts has one of the lowest firearm death rates in the nation, gun violence is still affecting communities across the state whether by suicide, domestic violence or drive-by shootings.
“While the commonwealth’s existing gun laws have proven to be effective in preventing gun violence compared to other states, relative success is never a cause for complacency,” House Speaker Ron Mariano, D-Quincy, said in a prepared statement.
Members of the panel that hammered out final details of the bill behind closed doors issued a statement saying it “builds on the commonwealth’s strong gun laws which have proven effective in lowering incidents of gun violence and equips our criminal justice system with the necessary tools to stem the tide of illegal firearms flooding our neighborhoods.”
A key provision of the bill would update the“assault” weapons ban by outlawing untraceable“ghost” guns that can be assembled using partsmanufactured on 3D printers. Dozens of long rifleswould be added to the state’s “assault” weaponsban, but “grandfathers in” newly banned weaponsbought prior to the new restrictions going into
effect.
The plan also prohibits carrying firearms in government buildings, polling places and schools, with exemptions for current and retired certified law enforcement professionals. Local governments could vote to opt out of the municipal building firearm restrictions.
It also set strict penalties for possession of modification devices such as Glock switches that convert semi-automatic firearms into fully automatic, military- style weapons.