Philadelphia, PA—Three bipartisan gun safety policies passed the Pennsylvania House of Representatives this legislative session, making history. Three failed by a single vote – allowing homemade machine guns to proliferate and depriving law enforcement of tools to fight gun trafficking.
CeaseFirePA Action, the Commonwealth’s leading gun violence prevention advocacy organization, endorsed a slate of candidates who will help ensure these life-saving policies pass next session.
“The Pennsylvania House of Representatives delivered on their commitment to move gun safety policies forward. They heard from survivors, law enforcement officers, trauma surgeons and other experts – and then they took historic action, putting life-saving solutions up for a votes,” said Adam Garber, CeaseFirePA Action’s Executive Director. “While three bipartisan bills moved forward, we need more champions who put the lives and safety of Pennsylvanians before the profits of the gun industry. And that’s exactly what each of these candidates will do.”
During the current session, six gun safety bills have historically received votes:
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PASSED: Extreme Risk Protection Orders would prevent firearm suicides, which comprise 60% of all gun deaths in Pennsylvania, often in rural communities;
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PASSED: Universal Background Checks close a loophole that allows anyone to buy a long gun, such as the AR-15 used in PA’s 19th mass shooting this year at the Trump rally, without a background check;
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PASSED: Ending ghost guns, which were used in a shooting that killed three in Bucks County, closing down the community;
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FAILED: Stopping the proliferation of machine guns converters, which enabled the shooting of 8 students at a SEPTA bus stop;
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FAILED: Preventing firearm trafficking by modernizing record-keeping systems, which was supported by the PA District Attorneys Association and PA Police Chief Association;
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FAILED: Requiring the reporting of lost or stolen firearms to address straw purchases;
The three passed bills are languishing in the Pennsylvania Senate. CeaseFirePA Action plans to announce Pennsylvania Senate endorsements in the coming weeks.
“It’s unconscionable that these life-saving policies, which are supported by Pennsylvanians, including conservatives and gun owners, are waiting for a hearing in the Senate while families attend more funerals. Candidates ignore gun safety issues at their own political peril,” said Garber.
STATE HOUSE ENDORSEMENTS
- District 19 Rep. Aerion Abney
- District 20: Rep. Emily Kinkead
- District 22 Rep. Josh Siegel
- District 23 Rep. Dan Frankel
- District 24 Rep. Latasha Mayes
- District 26: Rep. Paul Friel
- District 29 Rep. Tim Brennan
- District 30 Rep. Arvind Venkat
- District 31 Rep. Perry Warren
- District 32 Rep. MCandrew
- District 33: Rep. Mandy Steele
- District 34 Rep. Abigail Salisbury
- District 36 Rep. Jessica Benham
- District 38 John Inglis
- District 39 Angela Girol
- District 41 Bradford Terrell Chambers
- District 42 Rep. Dan Miller
- District 44 Hadley Haas
- District 46 Alex Taylor
- District 49 Rep. Ismail Smith-Wade-El
- District 53 Rep. Steven Malagari
- District 54 Rep. Gregory Scott
- District 61 Rep. Liz Hanbidge
- District 70 Rep. Matt Bradford
- District 74 Rep. Dan Williams
- District 82 Rep. Paul Takac
- District 88 Sara Agerton
- District 95 Rep. Carol Hill-Evans
- District 96 Rep. Michael Sturla
- District 103 Nathan Davidson
- District 105 Rep. Justin Fleming
- District 112 Rep. Kyle Mullins
- District 113 Rep. Kyle Donahue
- District 114 Rep. Bridget Kosierowski
- District 115: Rep. Maureen Madden
- District 118 Rep. Jim Haddock
- District 119 Megan Kocher
- District 121 Rep. Ed Pashinski
- District 129 Rep. Johanny Cepeda-Freytiz
- District 132 Rep. Mike Schlossberg
- District 133 Rep. Jeanne Mcneill
- District 134 Rep. Peter Schweyer
- District 135 Rep. Stephen Samuelson
- District 136 Rep. Bob Freeman
- District 137 Anna R Thomas
- District 140 Rep. Jim Prokopiak
- District 141 Rep. Tina Davis
- District 142 Anna Payne
- District 143 Eleanor Breslin
- District 144 Rep. Brian Munroe
- District 146 Rep. Joseph Ciresi
- District 148 Rep. Mary Jo Daley
- District 149 Rep. Timothy Briggs
- District 150 Rep. Joseph Webster
- District 151 Rep. Melissa Cerrato
- District 152 Rep. Nancy Guenst
- District 153 Rep. Ben Sanchez
- District 154 Rep. Napoleon Nelson
- District 155 Rep. Danielle Friel Otten
- District 156 Rep. Chris Pielli
- District 157 Rep. Melissa Shusterman
- District 158 Rep. Christina Sappey
- District 159 Rep. Carol Kazeem
- District 160 Elizabeth Moro
- District 161 Rep. Leanne Krueger
- District 162 Rep. David Delloso
- District 163 Rep. Heather Boyd
- District 164 Rep. Gina Curry
- District 165 Rep. Jennifer O’Mara
- District 167 Rep. Kristine Howard
- District 168 Rep. Lisa Borowski
- District 172 Sean Michael Dougherty
- District 173 Rep. Pat Gallagher
- District 174 Rep. Ed Neilson
- District 177: Joe Hohenstein
- District 180 Rep. Jose Giral
- District 182 Rep. Ben Waxman
- District 184 Rep. Liz Fiedler
- District 186 Rep. Jordan Harris
- District 187 Stefanie Rafes
- District 189 Rep. Tarah Probst
- District 191 Rep. Joanna McClinton
- District 192 Rep. Morgan Cephas
- District 194 Rep. Tarik Khan
- District 197 Rep. Danilo Burgos
- District 198 Rep. Darisha Parker
- District 200 Rep. Chris Rabb
- District 202 Rep. Jared Solomon
- District 203 Rep. Anthony Bellmon
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As the Commonwealth’s leading gun violence prevention organization, CeaseFirePA works to ensure everyone can live a life free from gun violence. We organize with communities closest to the issue, hold those in power accountable, and maximize the strengths of every member in our broad coalition.
