Congressman Mo Brooks & 35 Original Cosponsors Introduce Pro-2nd Amendment Bill to Protect Firearm-Transporting Travelers

Press Release

Tuesday, Congressman Mo Brooks (AL-05) and 35 original cosponsors introduced the Lawful Interstate Transportation of Firearms Act, a simple, 5-page pro-Second Amendment bill.

Original cosponsors: Dan Crenshaw (TX-02), Mike McCaul (TX-10), Mike Rogers (AL-03), Jerry Carl (AL-01), Robert Aderholt (AL-04), Barry Moore (AL-02), Greg Steube (FL-17), Doug Lamalfa (CA-01), Randy Weber (TX-14), Doug Lamborn (CO-05), Jeff Duncan (SC-03), Rick Allen (GA-12), Alex Mooney (WV-02), Scott Perry (PA-10), Matt Gaetz (FL-01), Brian Babin (TX-36), Adrian Smith (NE-03), Yvette Herrell (NM-02), Jody Hice (GA-10), Ted Budd (NC-13), Rick Crawford (AR-01), Matt Rosendale (MT-At Large), Michael Guest (MS-03), Bob Gibbs (OH-07), Michael Cloud (TX-27), Russ Fulcher (ID-01), Andy Harris (MD-01), Ralph Norman (SC-05), Paul Gosar (AZ-04), Mary Miller (IL-15), Lauren Boebert (CO-03), Glenn Grothman (WI-06), Lance Gooden (TX-05), Scott DesJarlais (TN-04), and Michael Waltz (FL-06).

Congressman Brooks said, ""The right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed' means that Americans do not relinquish their Second Amendment Rights by simply traveling across city boundaries or state lines. All Americans have the Constitutional right to self-defense whether they are at home or traveling. My bill, the Lawful Interstate Transportation of Firearms Act, would bar freedom-hating, anti-Second Amendment states and localities from prosecuting firearm-transporting travelers who engage in travel-related activities on the way to their destination."

Notably, influential Second Amendment Rights protection groups the National Association for Gun Rights (NAGR) and Gun Owners of America (GOA) have endorsed the Lawful Interstate Transportation of Firearms Act.

"Anti-gun jurisdictions continue to misconstrue and flat out ignore federal law which protects gun owners while they travel between any two locations where it is legal to own a firearm," said Dudley Brown, President of the National Association for Gun Rights. "Thankfully, Congressman Brooks has introduced the Lawful Interstate Transportation of Firearms Act which expands safeguards for lawful gun owners traveling through anti-gun jurisdictions. This bill ensures that gun owners traveling across state lines are protected and not maliciously tormented by state or municipal laws that conflict with your right to keep and bear arms."

"Malicious state laws unconstitutionally criminalize what would otherwise be considered law-abiding activity for the explicit purposes of making gun ownership, possession, and transportation more difficult," said Aidan Johnston, Gun Owners of America's Director of Federal Affairs. "It is un-American to arrest a gun owner for stopping for gas, lunch, or medical treatment while transporting an unloaded, secured, and lawfully owned firearm."

What does this bill do? The Lawful Interstate Transportation of Firearms Act would expand the Firearms Owners' Protection Act (FOPA) "transport" definition to include "staying in temporary lodging, stopping for food, fuel, vehicle maintenance, an emergency, medical treatment, or any other activity incidental to the transport." Further, the bill clarifies that the ability to transport a firearm also applies to ammunition and detachable magazines, which are essential to the function and purpose of a firearm.

Why is this bill necessary? Currently, FOPA prohibits state prosecution of persons traveling from one place to another for any state firearms offense if the traveler is merely passing through on the way to their destination as long as the firearm is transported in a locked container other than the vehicle glove compartment or console.

Despite FOPA protections, a disturbing trend has emerged wherein anti-Second Amendment states and localities increasingly seek to criminalize the possession of a firearm or ammunition. These freedom-hating jurisdictions continue to seek ways to prosecute travelers merely for the possession of an otherwise lawful firearm. This bill seeks to safeguard otherwise law-abiding gun owners traveling the country from overcriminalization by anti-Second Amendment states and localities.

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