The governor of New Jersey wants to implement new gun control measures at the price point, by making it far more expensive to own a gun in New Jersey than it is now:
NY TIMES – Gov. Philip D. Murphy of New Jersey wants to put the state at the forefront of a movement to raise fees on gun permits in order to expand efforts to tackle gun violence and reduce the flow of illegal firearms.
Though New Jersey has strict gun control laws, its firearms fees have not changed since the mid-1960s, making it a bargain for gun owners. A firearm identification card costs $5, while a permit to own a firearm is $2. A permit to carry a gun costs $20.
Mr. Murphy, a Democrat, has proposed fees that would be among the highest in the country. An identification card would cost $100, an owner’s permit would be $50 and a carry permit $400.
Though he is prohibited by state law from directing the new revenue toward specific programs, Mr. Murphy said it would go toward anti-violence initiatives.
“There’s no war on responsible gun owners,” Mr. Murphy said in an interview. “We can support the efforts of the attorney general, state troopers, county and local law enforcement, to do the stuff we need to do: track crime, track gun violence, combat trafficking of illegal guns.
This is absolutely a war on responsible gun owners. They are the ones who pay these fees to purchase and carry concealed firearms in the fist place.
And how exactly is this going to reduce illegal guns? In fact I suspect it will have the opposite effect if they raise the fees to this extent, as the demand for illegal guns will go UP from people who can’t afford to pay these fees – people who just want to exercise their constitutionally protected right to protect themselves and their families.
No, this isn’t about tackling gun violence or reducing illegal guns at all. This is gun control, plain and simple. If they can’t keep you from buying guns, they’ll just make it incredibly expensive to do so.