The GOP-controlled Kentucky House of Representatives passed a bill Monday afternoon to ban devices that convert semi-automatic firearms into automatic weapons, though a notable number of Republicans voted against it.
House Bill 299, sponsored by House Majority Whip Jason Nemes, R-Louisville, would let local law enforcement enforce at the state level an existing federal ban on possessing so-called machine gun conversion devices.
Louisville Metro Police Department Chief Paul Humphrey told lawmakers during a committee hearing that local officers currently cannot seize such devices when they encounter them because the prohibition is not written into state law.
“We don’t need more laws on guns. What we do need to do is enforce the laws that we have,” Nemes said on the House floor. “All this bill does is allow local law enforcement to enforce the law that already exists.”
Democrats, who are in the minority, joined a plurality of Republicans to pass the bill 65-25. All votes against the measure came from Republicans.
Some GOP lawmakers had previously raised concerns about the constitutionality of the proposal. The bill now heads to the Kentucky Senate for consideration.
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