LANSING, Mich. (June 25, 2024) — Today, Senator Dayna Polehanki (D-Livonia) introduced Senate Bill 942, which aims to prohibit the manufacture, sale, and possession of bump stocks in the state of Michigan. Bump stocks are devices intended to significantly increase a gun’s rate of fire, and they are designed to convert semi-automatic firearms into machine guns in a matter of minutes.
In 2017, the largest, deadliest mass shooting in our nation’s history claimed the lives of over 60 concertgoers and left hundreds of others critically injured after a lone shooter in a Las Vegas, Nevada hotel room fired over 1,000 rounds in just 11 minutes with rifles modified with bump stocks.
As a result, in 2018, the Trump Administration used its authority to ban bump stocks at the federal level of government. However, nearly two weeks ago, in the Garland v. Cargill decision, the United States Supreme Court ruled that the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives exceeded its authority by banning bump stocks. Consequently, the bump stocks used in the country’s deadliest mass shooting are now legal in states such as Michigan that don’t already have existing protections in place.
“Within minutes after the Cargill decision came through, I knew that we needed to act at the state level to protect our communities from further senseless gun violence,” said Sen. Polehanki. “Here in Michigan, it’s a life-or-death matter that we join the 16 other states with policies that ban deadly bump stocks and keep these dangerous devices out of the hands of Michigan residents. Bump stocks that can turn firearms into illegal, destructive weapons of war should never have a place in our communities.”
Bump stocks are particularly attractive to mass shooters and other criminals, and they have been recovered in numerous mass shootings across the country as they can allow rifles to fire up to 800 rounds per minute. The devices can also be small and simple in design, making them easy to manufacture or even 3D print.
Senate Bill 942 was referred to the Senate Committee on Civil Rights, Judiciary, and Public Safety for further consideration.