Sign up on Feb 26 at 8am to provide testimony against ammo bill, firearm storage, etc

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  • wgttgw

    Active Member
    Apr 10, 2011
    284
    Cambridge
    I got an email this evening that I was invited to give oral testimony on all 4 Bills. I thought there would be no chance in getting selected, given the limited number of testimony spots allotted.

    I definitely appose all the proposed bills and would be happy to let them know. I am a little worried that my being selected may hay bumped someone else more qualified to speak on our behalf out.

    Does anyone know if there's someone who wanted to testify and did not get chosen? I would be willing to give my spot to someone more qualified to speak if that's possible. Or possibly I could try to hit there points against the bill along with mine.
     

    MRH

    Never sell your sword
    MDS Supporter
    Oct 5, 2020
    1,716
    Chesapeake Bay
    I also voted "unfavorable" to all the bills, and I was also selected to give oral testimony. Now I am worried I won't know what to say if called upon, anyone have some suggestions or something written out that I could use?
     

    MigraineMan

    Ultimate Member
    Jun 9, 2011
    19,109
    Frederick County
    Nice of them to hold the selection announcements until after 5pm today so selected folks will have difficulty arranging time-off on Monday. Bastards.
    Now I am worried I won't know what to say if called upon
    If you received an invite to the Zoom meeting, consider yourself "called upon." I received an outright rejection email for bills last week. I don't know if they're holding people in reserve (from complaints where someone no-showed and they just dropped the slot) or if the Committee Chair has elected to accept more testimony. Could be they want 10 people on-deck, and will choose 4 randomly at session time. Won't know until it happens.

    Advice - Don't quote the Constitution; they already know that. Have three talking points. Listen to the testimony before you, and be prepared to switch to "Plan B" on short notice. Make your testimony yours. Pick a topic you can speak to directly, something that affects you personally. Speak from your heart (avoid reading prose from a written page ... it comes off phony and disingenuous.) Note cards with bullet-points are fine as reminders, but avoid paragraphs. Make eye contact with the camera - your audience is on the other side of the lens.

    Most important advice - practice. If you're not used to public speaking, sit down with a stopwatch or an egg timer and talk out loud. The Committee Chair can change testimony time on a whim. Might be as short as 30s for a crowded bill, though 2-3 minutes is more typical. Seriously, talk out loud at your kitchen table and time it. You might be amazed at how quick 2 minutes is, and how little time you have to make your point. Also, one point solidly presented is much better than three points you stumble through.
     

    Nickberg500

    Ultimate Member
    Sep 20, 2019
    1,064
    North of Baltimore County
    Jackpot! I will be one of the ones who testify!

    It anyone has testimonies that will not get heard, that you want me to study, lay them on me!
    65ae9affb8abaea75145cb4eee47d25b.jpg
     

    Ponder_MD

    Ultimate Member
    Mar 9, 2020
    4,559
    Maryland
    OK, all you guys who were selected to speak, need to get your shit together and collaborate. Make sure you're not going to contradict each other.

    Prepare written notes. Norton is articulate and knows the issues. Contact him and run your remarks past him for critique. Don't waste this opportunity.
     

    BeoBill

    Crank in the Third Row
    MDS Supporter
    Oct 3, 2013
    27,064
    南馬里蘭州鮑伊
    OK, all you guys who were selected to speak, need to get your shit together and collaborate. Make sure you're not going to contradict each other.

    Prepare written notes. Norton is articulate and knows the issues. Contact him and run your remarks past him for critique. Don't waste this opportunity.

    dblas is also a bottomless fountain of advice.
     

    Nickberg500

    Ultimate Member
    Sep 20, 2019
    1,064
    North of Baltimore County
    OK, all you guys who were selected to speak, need to get your shit together and collaborate. Make sure you're not going to contradict each other.

    Prepare written notes. Norton is articulate and knows the issues. Contact him and run your remarks past him for critique. Don't waste this opportunity.
    dblas is also a bottomless fountain of advice.
    Can we summon them to this thread? Might make more sense to coordinate here instead of filling up our inboxes
     

    wgttgw

    Active Member
    Apr 10, 2011
    284
    Cambridge
    I didn't have anything on the schedule for Monday when I signed up to give oral testimony but now I will need to work on Monday (nature of my business my schedule always changes). I am hoping to multitask and both work and testify.

    Does anyone know how the testimony will work? I have an invitation to testify on all 4 Bill's.

    All 4 meetings start at the same time, 1:30PM. Are they being heard simultaneously?

    Will I log in and then listen to all the testimony waiting to hear my name called to testify? Can it be done from a cell phone?

    Sorry this is all new to me. I have never given testimony nor ever had a zoom meeting.
     

    hodgepodge

    Senior Member (Gold)
    Sep 3, 2009
    10,085
    Arnold, MD
    OK. Following are my talking points.
    I could feel my blood pressure going up while writing them. I do believe a cocktail is calling my name.



    Talking Points

    HB175
    I know and respect Delegate Henson’s efforts to prevent violence in Maryland communities.
    But this bill, affecting only legal purchasers, will do nothing to affect violence.
    Between July 1 and November 2019, nearly 20% ammunition purchases was rejected by the California Department of Justice. Of the 345,547 ammunition background checks performed, only 101 stopped the buyer because he or she was a “prohibited person” who can’t legally possess ammunition, according to state Department of Justice data. (.04%)
    Yet another 62,000 ammunition purchases were rejected as well, for incorrect data entry into the California registry.

    The problem is that most criminals using handguns are not purchasing the guns or the ammunition from licensed dealers who would be affected by this bill.

    I could find no statistics on where criminals are acquiring the ammunition used in crimes. And until the sponsor can prove that this bill would affect crime, it must be rejected.

    Previous ammo log was NEVER used to solve a crime in Maryland.

    California has an ID requirement for ammunition purchases. The usual fee for a NICS check is $10, unreasonable for a $20 box of ammunition.


    https://www.sacbee.com/news/california/article238203004.html

    HB200 Storage


    (c) (1) A person may not store or leave a [loaded] firearm in a location where 2 the person knew or should have known that an unsupervised [child would] MINOR COULD 3 gain access to the firearm.

    This is a bill to solve a problem that does not exist. Minor access to a firearm is incredibly rare. Yes, it can be a tragedy. But safe storage is already a law in Maryland.
    And the additional steps required here are completely unreasonable.
    I object most to the storage requirement prohibiting storage where a minor, now defined as 17-year-olds, COULD GAIN ACCESS. This is a change from the current law criminalizing storage when a minor WOULD gain access.
    I have a gun at home. It’s stored in a $2000, 750-pound safe. BUT, a minor, with the right tools COULD gain access to the gun. As such, my secured possession would become illegal.
    And I follow the safety protocol of storing ammunition away from the gun. This would also become illegal storage.

    This bill must be rejected.

    HB638 Ghost Guns

    This bill requiring the registration and tracking of homemade firearms is unnecessary.
    Criminals are not generally interested in the time or expense of making their own gun It is no more difficult for criminals to buy guns than it is for them to buy illegal drugs.
    I have seen no reliable statistics that homemade guns are a problem in Maryland. They have turned up at crime scenes, but in negligible numbers.
    They have turned up in the possession of felons or other prohibited persons. But these people are already prohibited from owning ANY firearm. This law is unnecessary.
    Homemade guns are produced at significant time and expense by hobbyists. When complete, these guns usually cost more than purchased guns, but they are customized to the owner’s desire. They usually have custom triggers, barrels, or colored frames.
    They may not be produced for sale. Anyone transferring such a gun to a criminal is already committing a crime.
    This bill should be rejected.

    HB1291 Ghost Guns

    Prohibiting the fabrication or construction of a firearm which does not have a serial number imprinted by a federally licensed firearm manufacturer. Would ban the possession and use of so-called “80% receivers”. Essentially limiting “homebuilt” firearms to the assembly of a firearm using a factory complete lower receiver which is sold as a firearm and subject to background checks.


    This bill prohibiting homemade firearms is unnecessary.
    Criminals are not generally interested in the time or expense of making their own gun It is no more difficult for criminals to buy guns than it is for them to buy illegal drugs.
    If they can currently illegally obtain registered firearms, the requirement that homemade forearms include a manufacturer or FFL supplied serial number would not be effective in preventing transmission to criminals..
    Homemade guns are produced at significant time and expense by hobbyists. When complete, these guns usually cost more than purchased guns, but they are customized to the owner’s desire. They usually have custom triggers, barrels, or colored frames.
    They may not be produced for sale. Anyone transferring such a gun to a criminal is already committing a crime.
    This bill should be rejected.
     

    wgttgw

    Active Member
    Apr 10, 2011
    284
    Cambridge
    I have written my thoughts as well and received the link to testify on all 4 Bills.

    I am just confused a little as to how this is going to work. There's a go to meeting link for each of the 4 Bills. They all 4 start a 1:30 PM.

    How would I possibly use all 4 links and testify on each of the Bills?

    Sorry for my ignorance on zoom. Maybe I am just not getting it.
     

    MJD438

    Ultimate Member
    MDS Supporter
    Feb 28, 2012
    5,849
    Somewhere in MD
    I have written my thoughts as well and received the link to testify on all 4 Bills.

    I am just confused a little as to how this is going to work. There's a go to meeting link for each of the 4 Bills. They all 4 start a 1:30 PM.

    How would I possibly use all 4 links and testify on each of the Bills?

    Sorry for my ignorance on zoom. Maybe I am just not getting it.




    There is ONE Zoom meeting for the committee hearing. The bills will be heard in the order determined by, and at the complete discretion of, the Chair. Participants will be kept in the Zoom Waiting Room until their turn to testify and will be sent back to the Zoom Waiting Room when not actively testifying to await any additional bills they are assigned to.
     

    MigraineMan

    Ultimate Member
    Jun 9, 2011
    19,109
    Frederick County
    There is ONE Zoom meeting for the committee hearing. The bills will be heard in the order determined by, and at the complete discretion of, the Chair. Participants will be kept in the Zoom Waiting Room until their turn to testify and will be sent back to the Zoom Waiting Room when not actively testifying to await any additional bills they are assigned to.
    The Zoom links you received should have the same "room" number on them. Mine do. One of the House staffers will moderate from behind-the-scenes, and will likely admit you to the meeting from the waiting room when you are confirmed as "invited." Your connection will be muted by the moderator until it's your time to speak.

    Typically, the Chair will re-organize the committee agenda on a whim, so don't think that the published schedule on the MDGA site is cast in concrete. Often, gun bills get shuttled to the end ... either they're going to run long, or it's a strategy to get people to become frustrated and leave. With the online testimony, previous sessions have been limited to four or five pro positions, and an equal number of opposition slots. There is no guarantee that they won't have 10 people in the waiting room and only allow four to speak.
     

    MigraineMan

    Ultimate Member
    Jun 9, 2011
    19,109
    Frederick County
    Just re-read the House Judiciary Committee witness guidelines, and they indicate there may be up to 50 witness slots. (Senate rules are different, and may be as few as five for each side.) So there might be a bunch of folks testifying - budget several hours for the session.

    Per-person time is pegged at 2 minutes. It's possible that 0638 and 1291 may get combined together due to their similarities. Don't be caught off-guard if that happens. Be prepared to take a machete to your testimony if you have two substantially different talking points for these bills.
     

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