Arkansas’ governor Asa Hutchinson vetoed a 2A sanctuary bill after it initially passed, but the Senate has now voted to override the veto and they have passed it along to the House where it awaits one final vote.
2A sanctuary legislation has become a hot topic of debate in recent weeks as the Biden administration and Democrats in Congress start a renewed push for gun control. The legislation on the table in Arkansas is not the standard 2A sanctuary legislation that has been proposed by other states.
The Arkansas Sovereignty Act declares that all unconstitutional gun control laws are null and void in the state, and specifically refers to the National Firearms Act of 1934, the Gun Control Act of 1968, and any future bans on firearms or attempts to confiscate them.
The bill also forbids state and local law enforcement from cooperating with federal officials in enforcing any unconstitutional gun law, and could punish individual offenders with a misdemeanor charge and a $500 fine. That appears to be Hutchinson’s main issue with the legislation.
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In his veto message, Hutchinson also pointed out that the bill’s language attempting to nullify the NFA and GCA “does not attempt to provide any exception for provisions of those laws concerning unlawful possession by violent criminals,” and noted that other criminal statutes in the state reference both the NFA and GCA but aren’t covered under SB 298, which the governor says would turn the bill into “a defense attorney’s dream come true.”
From a legal perspective, the governor is probably right. It’s highly unlikely that any court is going to recognize the state’s claim that federal law is null and void in the state simply because lawmakers passed a bill saying so. Rather than borrowing language from California’s “sanctuary state” law dealing with illegal immigration, which has been upheld by the courts, the Arkansas legislature decided to push the boundaries of Tenth Amendment jurisprudence, knowing full well that the legislation is likely to face a court challenge if its enacted into law.
This legislation will likely pass. in the initial vote, the Arkansas House passed the legislation 76 to 18. The governor’s veto is likely to be overturned by the House in the coming days and Arkansas will be a 2A sanctuary state.
