Maryland Dems Define ‘Unfinished’ Frames as Firearms, Push to Ban Them

Maryland Democrats are pushing to alter the definition of “firearm” so as to include an “unfinished frame,” and then to ban that frame from ownership.

The redefinition and the ban are contained in Senate Bill 387, which would categorize an “unfinished frame” as a firearm and require it to be serialized in order to be legal:

FOR the purpose of altering a certain definition of “firearm” to include a certain unfinished frame or receiver; prohibiting a person from purchasing, receiving, selling, offering to sell, or transferring an unfinished frame or receiver, or possessing a firearm on or after a certain date, unless it is required by federal law to be, and has been, imprinted with a certain number in a certain manner.

SB 387 goes on to focus on frames and receivers, placing them under the heading of “firearm,” and explicitly categorizing a “starter gun” as a “firearm.”

After “altering” the definition of “firearm,” SB 387 says:

ON OR AFTER JANUARY 1, 2023, A PERSON MAY NOT POSSESS A FIREARM UNLESS: (1) THE FIREARM IS REQUIRED BY FEDERAL LAW TO BE, AND HAS BEEN, IMPRINTED BY A FEDERALLY LICENSED FIREARMS MANUFACTURER OR FEDERALLY LICENSED FIREARMS IMPORTER WITH A SERIAL NUMBER IN COMPLIANCE WITH ALL FEDERAL LAWS AND REGULATIONS APPLICABLE TO THE MANUFACTURE AND IMPORT OF FIREARMS; OR (2) THE FIREARM HAS BEEN IMPRINTED BY A FEDERALLY LICENSED FIREARMS DEALER OR OTHER FEDERAL LICENSEE AUTHORIZED TO PROVIDE MARKING SERVICES WITH THE FIRST THREE AND LAST FIVE DIGITS OF THE LICENSEE’S FEDERAL FIREARMS LICENSE NUMBER, FOLLOWED BY A HYPHEN, AND FOLLOWED BY ANOTHER NUMBER.

The Baltimore Sun reports that SB 387 has the support of Del. Luke Clippinger (D), Del. Lesley Lopez (D), State Sen. William C. Smith Jr. (D), and Attorney General Brian Frosh (D), among others.

Mike Bloomberg-affiliated Moms Demand Action is also pushing for passage of the “ghost gun” ban.

Maryland already has stringent gun controls. The Firearms Safety Act of 2013 banned “assault weapons” and “high-capacity” magazines and put in a place a fingerprinting/registration requirement for new handgun buyers.

The Sun noted that Maryland has a red flag law that took effect October 1, 2018, and Everytown for Gun Safety points out that Maryland has as gun storage law, universal background checks for handgun purchases, among other controls.

AWR Hawkins is an award-winning Second Amendment columnist for Breitbart News and the writer/curator of Down Range with AWR Hawkins, a weekly newsletter focused on all things Second Amendment, also for Breitbart News. He is the political analyst for Armed American Radio and a Turning Point USA Ambassador. Follow him on Instagram: @awr_hawkins. Reach him at awrhawkins@breitbart.com. You can sign up to get Down Range at breitbart.com/downrange.