Bill Summary – FastDemocracy

SECOND REGULAR SESSION
                      HOUSE CONCURRENT
                       RESOLUTION NO. 62
                              102ND GENERAL ASSEMBLY
                           INTRODUCED BY REPRESENTATIVE MCMULLEN.
    5664H.02I                                                         DANA RADEMAN MILLER, Chief Clerk



           WHEREAS, the Second Amendment to the United States Constitution recognizes a
 2 pre-existing, God-given right of the people to keep and bear arms, which necessarily includes
 3 ammunition as firearms are rendered useless without it; and
 4
 5         WHEREAS, Article I, Section 23 of the Missouri Constitution protects this same
 6 right of the citizens with an explicit inclusion of ammunition; and
 7
 8         WHEREAS, it is utterly inappropriate for any government official who takes an oath
 9 to support and uphold the Constitution to actively seek to curtail or end the supply of essential
10 ammunition available to the citizenry; and
11
12         WHEREAS, the preparedness of the United States military to fight aggressors
13 anywhere in the world should be the single most critical concern of the federal government;
14 and
15
16         WHEREAS, private industry, including within this state, serves an essential national
17 security role by providing our military forces with the tools and equipment necessary to keep
18 our country and countless others free from tyranny and evil; and
19
20         WHEREAS, one such private industry member operates the Lake City Army
21 Ammunition Plant here in the Show-Me State, providing vital ammunition to the fighting
22 men and women of the United States Armed Forces; and
23
24         WHEREAS, since 2001, the United States government has encouraged this private
25 company to sell certain surplus ammunition made in the Lake City Army Ammunition Plant
26 to law-abiding Americans during times of relative peace in order to ensure the plant continues
HCR 62                                             2

27   to run near capacity so there is no delay in providing needed ammunition to the military when
28   the next unavoidable conflict arises; and
29
30          WHEREAS, the nation's more than 100 million firearm owners keep and use their
31   estimated 470 million firearms responsibly and legally every single day of the year without
32   recognition or fanfare; and
33
34          WHEREAS, research suggests that firearms of every type are used up to 2.5 million
35   times every year in America to defend against violence; and
36
37            WHEREAS, emotional calls from public policymakers to halt commercial sales of
38   surplus ammunition from the Lake City Army Ammunition Plant should be summarily
39   rejected in order to maintain adequate supplies of ammunition to the American public and,
40   critically, to maintain United States military preparedness; and
41
42           WHEREAS, a prohibition on the commercial sale of this ammunition would result in
43   the loss of up to 700 jobs in the Lake City Army Ammunition Plant, detrimentally affecting
44   hundreds of hardworking families living in this state; and
45
46           WHEREAS, the Missouri General Assembly supports the patriotic workers of the
47   Lake City Army Ammunition Plant and their contribution to the exercise of the citizens'
48   constitutional right to keep and bear arms and to national defense:
49
50          NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the members of the House of
51   Representatives of the One Hundred Second General Assembly, Second Regular Session, the
52   Senate concurring therein, hereby support the continued civilian sale of surplus ammunition
53   manufactured in the Lake City Army Ammunition Plant and urge the United States
54   government to reject any and all calls to end these sales; and
55
56          BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Chief Clerk of the Missouri House of
57   Representatives be instructed to prepare a properly inscribed copy of this resolution for each
58   member of Missouri's Congressional delegation.
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