DOVER, Del. - A bill to have a permit system in place to buy a handgun will not move forward until at least January. The so-called "permit to purchase" bill did not get voted on in the House before the 152nd General Assembly wrapped up on Friday, June 30.
Senate Substitute 1 for Senate Bill 2 passed the Senate in May 2023. Democratic leaders have announced a commitment to get the legislation passed after the General Assembly reconvenes in January.
The bill would require Delawareans that want to buy a handgun to complete a firearm training course and obtain a permit first. Critics say it's unconstitutional. However, gun control advocates like the Delaware chapters of Moms Demand Action and Students Demand Action say bills like this are proven to save lives and its failure is disappointing.
Attorney General Kathy Jennings says permit-to-purchase laws in other states reduce gun trafficking by 75 percent.
"It is the single most impactful gun safety policy available to us," Jennings says.
Delaware State Sportsmen's Association President Jeff Hague, whose group has filed lawsuits on multiple pieces of gun legislation, says a bill to require a permit to purchase a gun won't reduce crime because criminals won't follow the law. He expressed his opposition earlier this year. He even goes as far to say that the bill is discriminatory.
"It's racist," Hague says. "This disenfranchises those people most vulnerable to crime, violence, and that need to be able to have the right to defend themselves and studies show time after time that the people that are most affected by violent crime live in urban areas and the people that most need it are the ones that can't afford it."
Hague says he'll file a lawsuit before Governor Carney ever signs the permit to purchase bill and he'll be ready to do so as soon as the General Assembly reconvenes in January.