Illinois: Ammunition Registry Bill Introduced

On January 29th, House Bill 1467 was introduced to create a registry of ammunition sales by anyone, including private individuals. HB 1467 has not yet been assigned to a committee for consideration. Please contact your state Representative and urge them to OPPOSE HB 1467.

House Bill 1467, sponsored by Representative Lamont Robinson (D-5), would require anyone who sells any amount of ammunition to maintain records including the personal information and Firearms Owner Identification Card (FOID) of the buyer, and the type, quantity, and manufacturer of the ammunition. These records would have to be maintained for inspection by law enforcement and would also have to be forwarded to state police within seven days of each transaction. In addition, state police would be directed to establish and maintain a searchable database of these records.

These onerous recordkeeping and forwarding requirements will incur unnecessary costs on businesses and also hinder law-abiding gun owners trading ammunition among themselves. This solution in search of a problem will not only waste taxpayer-funded resources, but it will also not improve public safety. Current state law already prohibits those without a FOID from possessing ammunition, and sellers are required to verify that the buyer has a FOID. A registry would not affect criminals. The only purpose that these registries serve is to facilitate future confiscations from law-abiding citizens.