RESOLUTION NO.

OF 2013 CONCERNING THE NEW YORK SAFE ACT WHEREAS, the right of the people to keep and bear arms is guaranteed as an individual right under the Second Amendment to the United States Constitution; and WHEREAS, the right of the people to keep and bear arms for defense of life, liberty, and property is regarded as an inalienable right by the people of the Town of Saugerties; and WHEREAS, the lawful ownership of firearms is, and has been, a valued tradition in Saugerties, and the rights protected by the Second Amendment to the United States Constitution are exercised by many of our residents; and WHEREAS, the people of the Town of Saugerties derive economic and environmental benefits from all safe forms of recreation involving firearms, including, but not limited to, hunting and target shooting, under the Constitution of the United States; and WHEREAS, there is a need to reduce gun-related carnage, and to limit the ability of those who might engage in frenzied killing to possess military-style weapons built to inflict mass casualties; and WHEREAS, there is a need for tougher gun laws that respect the right of law-abiding citizens to possess weapons for hunting, sport and self-protection; and WHEREAS, members of the Saugerties Town Board, being elected

to represent the people of the Town of Saugerties, are duly sworn by their oath of office to uphold the Constitution of the United States; and WHEREAS, members of the New York State Assembly and the New York State Senate, being elected by the people of New York State, are duly sworn by their oath of office to uphold the Constitution of the United States; and WHEREAS, the enactment of the NY SAFE Act (Chapter 1) of the Laws of 2013) has engendered significant controversy over both the process by which it was enacted and certain provisions contained within it; and WHEREAS, seeking and considering, such public input is a standard to which we hold ourselves in the Town of Saugerties and is essential to the function of a democratic society; and WHEREAS, crafting the NY SAFE Act resulted in complex policy changes, many of which have been left up to interpretation, and may be confusing even to the State Legislators who voted on them and the law enforcement officials who are required to enforce and explain them; and WHEREAS, those firearm magazines with a capacity larger than seven rounds, which are authorized to be retained by existing owners, may only be loaded with seven rounds and eventually must be permanently altered to only accept seven rounds; and WHEREAS, this legislation does not fully take into consideration, the functions, procedures and capacity of law

enforcement, to respond to emergencies; and WHEREAS, this legislation may represent a reduction in current carrying capacity of police officers weapon ammunition; and WHEREAS, this legislation may render obsolete firearms issued by the Saugerties Police Department to its officers with no recompense or financial compensation provided to the Town to upgrade weapons; and WHEREAS, the failure to include funding in this legislation for replacement of compliant firearms in local police departments may cause a significant financial hardship on the Town of Saugerties as an unfunded state mandate; and WHEREAS, the failure to include funding in this legislation for local law enforcement personnel time to collect guns recently declared illegal, store illegal guns and arrange their final disposition, may cause a significant financial hardship on the Town of Saugerties as an unfunded state mandate; and WHEREAS, this legislation fails to provide funds and resources for specialized training of school personnel, local emergency first responders, and law enforcement personnel, to respond to and prevent school violence events, such as the incident that occurred at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut; NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the Town of Saugerties does request the NY

SAFE Act (Chapter 1 of the Laws of 2013) be amended to address the foregoing issues of enforcement and financial hardship caused by any unfunded state mandate provisions of the law, and that any provisions of the law which unlawfully infringe upon the right of the people to keep and bear arms be repealed, and further be it RESOLVED, that the Town Board of the Town of Saugerties strongly encourages members of the New York State Legislature to hold public hearings to address the issue of gun violence in a way that will produce meaningful results; and further be it RESOLVED, that the Town Board of the Town of Saugerties strongly supports legislative action to protect all New Yorkers from gun violence while upholding the constitutional rights of gun owners; and further be it RESOLVED, that a copy of this Resolution be sent to New York State Senator Cecilia Tkaczyk and New York State Assemblyman Peter Lopez, and moves its adoption. ADOPTED BY THE FOLLOWING:

Supervisor Kelly A. Myers Councilman Leighton Councilman Bruno Councilwoman Thornton Councilman Costello

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