Michigan bill would bar bump stocks after court ruling overturning federal ban

New legislation introduced in Michigan would ban the purchase and possession of bump stocks that make semiautomatic rifles fire faster after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned a federal ban on the devices.

State Sen. Dayna Polehanki, D-Livonia, who introduced the bill in the Michigan Senate called banning bump stocks in the state a "life-or-death matter."

Earlier this month, the nation's high court struck down the federal bump stocks ban put in place by former President Donald Trump's administration after a gunman used the device to open fire on those attending a 2017 Las Vegas music festival, the deadliest mass shooting by a single gunman in U.S. history.

"Within minutes after the (U.S. Supreme Court) decision came through, I knew that we needed to act at the state level to protect our communities from further senseless gun violence," Polehanki said in a statement.

Sixteen states and Washington, D.C., currently have state laws in place prohibiting bump stocks, according to Everytown for Gun Safety , a gun violence prevention organization.

Bump stocks attached to semiautomatic rifles can fire several hundred rounds in a minute.

Michigan Gun Violence: Michigan has new gun laws on the way, gun safety advocates want to see more

Polehanki's bill comes after Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signed into law several gun safety measures introduced by Democratic state lawmakers last year, including a background check expansion , firearm storage requirements and a "red flag" law allowing judges to temporarily bar those posing an imminent threat to themselves or others from possessing a firearm.

Gun safety advocates who applauded the new laws have said Michigan lawmakers can do more to curb gun violence in the state and Democratic state lawmakers have introduced additional proposals that would raise the minimum age for purchasing a firearm and establish a two-week waiting period between purchasing a firearm and obtaining it.

State lawmakers are working to craft Michigan's budget before their summer recess. So if they take up Polehanki's bill, that likely won't occur until after they return from that break. The bill was referred to the Michigan Senate's Committee on Civil Rights, Judiciary, and Public Safety.

Contact Clara Hendrickson at chendrickson@freepress.com or 313-296-5743. Follow her on X, previously called Twitter, @clarajanehen .

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This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan bill would bar bump stocks after court ruling overturning federal ban