Rumors about changing gun control laws shot down

Sen. Randy Feenstra, R-2, said last week any bills on the state level pertaining to gun control restrictions or taxes on ammunition are dead.

"There are no bills that will be happening concerning the Legislature this year," Feenstra said.

Neither is the national Congress considering any changes to gun laws at this time, he said.

"I haven't heard of any bills," Feenstra said. "I watch this very carefully because it's very important to me."

Feenstra said he staunchly supports the second amendment of the U.S. Constitution, which gives people the right to bear arms.

Some of the rumors concerning changes in gun laws started after U.S. Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. said in February the Obama administration will push to reinstate the 1994 assault weapon ban that expired in 2004, according to several news sources.

An attempt by the Daily Sentinel to contact the attorney general's office was not answered.

Scott Lauters, president of the Le Mars Sportsman's Club and a longtime member of the gun club, said it's a huge concern to many because of Democratic control in the White House.

"Democrats, the majority of the time, want to have gun control," Lauters said, citing that was the case with Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and former president Bill Clinton.

"There's been talk of taxing ammunition so sportsmen, hunters, shooters couldn't afford to own the ammunition," Lauters said. "They want to alter the second amendment. You can go ahead and own guns, but the ammunition will be so high you won't be able to shoot."

It's people that have problems with guns and take them to school or in places they shouldn't be that are behind the push for more control, Lauters said.

"Those people that don't have any common sense are going to be affecting whether I can own a gun," he said. "It's the calm before the storm."

Dick Halter, owner of Shirts 'N Shooters in Le Mars, sees first-hand how rumors about increased gun control are affecting his customers.

He can't keep gun components like primers and powder on the shelves because the demand has surpassed the supply. Manufacturers can't keep up.

"Everybody's nervous and cautious," Halter said. "People are stockpiling stuff."

People are getting those items, along with ammunition, now because many think if they don't, they may not be able to get it down the road, Halter said.

"Probably most gun owners feel things will get worse before they get better as far as more restrictions," he said.

Even the number of people in the county wanting new permits to purchase handguns and/or to carry concealed weapons is higher, Plymouth County Sheriff Mike Van Otterloo said.

"The increase I've been seeing is 25 to 30 percent which fairly significant," he said. "On an average week we process about 20 (permits)."

Those numbers don't include gun owners who are coming in to renew permits.

"I believe that part of the reason for the increase is that people are uncertain of what the gun laws in both Iowa and federally are going to change to," Van Otterloo said. "People are thinking, 'If I don't get a permit now, I will not be able to get one because of restrictions.'"

At the state level there was a bill to put stipulations on how gun permits are issued such as adding a waiting period, deciding who could obtain one and mandating who could carry a concealed weapon, but it never passed committee, Feenstra said.

"I'm a second amendment rights man. People should have the right to bear arms," he said. "I'm glad another year will pass without any changes."