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Illinois House committee passes bills to tax ammunition, register handguns

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[March 01, 2012]  SPRINGFIELD (AP) -- An Illinois House committee approved legislation Wednesday that would require a statewide registration for handguns and place a tax on ammunition, despite opposition from gun-rights advocates.

HardwareBoth bills -- touted as tools for improving the state's response to gun violence-- passed 7-4 and now go to the House floor.

The registration bill would impose a $20 fee for each handgun a person owns. The registration certificates, which owners would have to carry when in possession of a weapon, would expire every five years. Lost or stolen handguns would have to be reported to police.

Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel recently called for a statewide mandatory gun registration with a $65 fee. He and his allies have agreed to scale back the fee. Even at the lower level, a fee would pay for improving a background-checking system that has failed to process 100,000 mental health records, according to Felicia Davis, Emanuel's chief of staff.

Todd Vandermyde, lobbyist for the National Rifle Association, argued against the registration measure, saying it would increase costs for law-abiding citizens without affecting people who have guns illegally.

It would not prevent anyone with a valid Firearm Owner's Identification Card from owning guns, Davis said, but it would keep owners accountable if they illegally sell a gun or if a gun registered under their name is used in a crime.

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Rep. Will Davis, D-Homewood, responded that his legislation would help police track guns that were legally purchased but later sold and used in a crime. It would not prevent anyone with a valid Firearm Owner's Identification Card from owning guns, Davis said, but it would keep owners accountable if they illegally sell a gun or if a gun registered under their name is used in a crime.

Vandermyde also argued against a new tax on ammunition. He said it would interfere with the Second Amendment right to own firearms.

The sponsor disagreed, however. Rep. Kelly Cassidy, D-Chicago, said there's nothing unconstitutional about the 2 percent tax, which would generate money for trauma centers in high-crime areas.

Legislative aides estimate the tax would generate between $869,000 and $1.2 million a year.

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The bills are HB5831 and HB5167.

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Online: http://www.ilga.gov/

[Associated Press; By SHANNON MCFARLAND]

Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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