Monday, July 11, 2016

CA: Poll: Would you Vote for Background Checks on Ammunition?



An online poll is running in the San Diego Union Tribune in California.  It is currently at 39% for and 60% against.   This poll is a little different in that it is about ammunition instead of firearms.  It is a clear Second Amendment issue, so it will be interesting to see how it goes.

Here is a link to the poll.

Online polls measure intensity. They are not scientific in sampling.  They measure how many people feel strongly enough to answer an internet poll about a particular issue.  They measure intensity pretty well.  It is common to see Second Amendment supporters outnumber disarmists on these polls by about 3-7 to 1.  If the issue is clearly worded, the numbers can go much higher.  I have seen clearly worded polls go as high as 20-1 for Second Amendment supporters.

This poll is not too bad, but it does not explain what the laws in question would actually do.  There is no explanation that a fee can be charged for the backgroudn check, that the laws involved are enourmously wordy and complicated; that they have numerous exceptions; that the chances of them doing anything about crime is minuscule.  Here are the much simplified basics of the bill that passed the legislature.  It only goes into effect of the referendum fails to pass.


1.  All ammunition sales to individuals are required to be face to face and shall require a background check.  A long list of occupational exceptions, exceptions for concealed carry permit holders, law enforcement, etc. will not be required to process the background check, but sales will be recorded. Vendors may charge a fee of up to $10 per background check.

2.  It will be illegal to purchase ammunition through the mail.  Any orders done by mail will have to go to a licensed ammunition dealer.

3.  It will be illegal for residents of California to purchase ammunition out of state, and bring it back into the state.   Ammunition purchased outside the state will be required to be sent to a licensed vendor in California.  It is hard to see how this could be enforced.  Ammuniton is not serialized.  Boxes have lot numbers on them, but the ammunition could be removed from the box and dumped into an ammo can, making it effectively untraceable.

4.  Non-residents may legally transport ammunition into and through California, but may not sell it in California, unless is is sold through a licensed vendor subject to a background check.  There are exceptions for sale to a direct family member, registered domestic partner, or hunting partner in quantities of no more than 50 rounds per month.  The can legally fire the ammunition in California.

5.  All ammunition sales will be kept on a computer data base that will be checked against a list of people who have been ruled to be prohibited possessors of firearms. This might allow searches and confiscation of those on the database if, at some point in the future, they are declared prohibited possessors.  This has already been done with the firearm data base.


The effect of the proposed law in California will be increased costs and regulatory burden for responsible and honest California gun owners.  It may put some ammunition sellers out of business.  It will spark a surge in reloading and reloading components, as reloading is not regulated by the proposed laws.

Demand for ammunition by criminals is tiny.  Only a few rounds are needed to commmit many crimes.  The combination of low volume and strong motivation means that criminals will not be affected.  One ten dollar box of 50 rounds brought in from Arizona will be sufficient for a whole neighborhood of criminals in California for a year.  There are probably 10 billion rounds of ammunition sitting in California closets and workshops.  None of it is registered or tracked; criminals are already prohibited from possessing any of it.

The ammunition background check bills are aimed at harrassing honest, responsible gun owners.  Those are the people who the legislature appears to see as the "enemy".

©2016 by Dean Weingarten: Permission to share is granted when this notice is included.  Link to Gun Watch

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

The only caliber I do not reload for is the articles 22 gauge, lololololol. I do need to get a 45 caliber bullet mold a size die and a top punch.

Wireless.Phil said...

Anyone who read that poll, just ran out to tell friend to stock-up.

Anonymous said...

They just cannot work any harder to make sure that poll questions avoid the truth like the plague.

Would you vote? yes or no
would you vote TO? yes or no

Seeing as how the real truth is that RIGHTS, like the right to arms, (which includes ammunition every much as the right to a free press requires ink and pixels) themselves are not open to the direct democratic vote or the representative democratic vote.

Which way would you vote is another question that comes only after the first level is passed. Seeing as how it didn't make the first hurdle, which way a person votes isn't relevant beyond a mindless average like Michael Jordan's wealth plus a McDonald's workers wealth added together and divided by two.

It really is time to call out their false premise wherever it is, and this is yet another example where they frame the debate with their false premise crafted within the construction of the poll question itself.

Anonymous said...

I don't know how many polls I have seen to rank BO. but the polls never give you a place to write a comment. There is no place to say the worst rating they have listed is far to high for him. They never ask should he be hung for treason or how many times should he be hung. or if you had the chance to spit on him How much water would you have to drink to have enough spit. for my self I would be close to drowning. I'm waiting to see the poll should Obama be impeached first or hung first. We voted in control of both houses of congress and we still cant get him impeached and removed from office. to me it is clear that He is not the problem as much as the trash filling those seats. We managed to get rid of Boehner and we get Ryan, I think that says it all. Congress is the real problem, No guts no glory. time to start printing the wanted posters for use after they destroy this country. If we are ever going to get our rights fully restored we need to vote in people that can actually read and understand the constitution. People that actually believe they work for us. When the second amendment clearly states Shall Not Be Infringed. there is no authority for congress or state legislatures to consider Gun control bills. It requires a constitutional amendment to change shall not be infringed. The supreme court ruled if it is not written it doe s not exist. there is no authority written for government to write laws concerning the second amendment. the second amendment is the prohibition for writing any infringing laws. the second amendment is written, the tenth amendment is written thereby preventing any authority to enforce any laws concerning weapons of any kind or the paraphernalia for the use of those weapons. the fact is when the second amendment was written most people actually made their own weapons and ammo. this country grew up on the industrial revolution. guns and ammo became mass produced. Inventors improved their function the same kind of changes we accepted when we moved from oil lamps to electric lights. wagon trains and horses to steam locomotives and cars. point in fact we see used car sales now but have not seen used horse sales for many years. progress some times has its problems but nobody ever goes backwards. No one is rushing out to buy a covered wagon. dresses no longer have to cover the ankles. guns are no longer single shot leaving you to depend on your bowie knife for your second line of defense. some people hate progress, no law says we have to drag them along.