from ssgmarkcr
I came upon this bit of proposed legislation and while I should know better than to be surprised by anything from states with restrictive gun laws, this one did surprise me. I first came upon it on the Guns.com site, but it cited this article,
http://www.guns.com/2014/05/29/massachusetts-lawmakers-propose-may-issue-gun-ownership-bill-video/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=massachusetts-lawmakers-propose-may-issue-gun-ownership-bill-video
"The new proposal seeks to tighten and clarify state regulations about who can buy guns and how they can be bought. One potentially contentious change would give police the discretion to deny a permit for a rifle or shotgun if an applicant is deemed unsuitable.
Under current law, police can apply a vague standard of unsuitability for licenses to carry a gun. But police do not have that discretion in issuing the Firearms Identification Card, which allows Massachusetts residents who pass a background check to buy a small-capacity rifle or shotgun.
In an effort to establish uniform criteria across Massachusetts, the bill would require the state Executive Office of Public Safety to create specific standards for suitability."
http://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/2014/05/27/deleo-unveils-bill-strengthen-gun-laws-mass/Y7CUFEFhGcOHnY6D5GJTmI/story.html
Of course, the criteria for suitability would be set after the bill is passed which make it problematic. While there is potentially a route for the criteria to be uniform state wide, something being decided by some executive branch panel has the potential for unpleasant surprises with no way (at least nothing mentioned yet) of overriding it is a concern.
