Hawaii governor toughens gun laws to help 'keep our communities safe'

Government
Guns 1000
Hawaii Gov. David Ige has toughened the state's gun laws. | File photo

Hawaii Gov. David Ige recently signed a bill that restored a law requiring a closer examination of people who obtain a specific category of firearms.

Ige signed HB2075 (Act 030), which requires the physical, in-person inspection of three categories of firearms that county police chiefs have singled out as threats to public safety, according to a release from the governor’s office.

The three categories, according to the release, are guns that do not have serial numbers, guns brought to Hawaii from out of state and guns transferred between private individuals. Ige pointed to the recent mass shootings across the U.S. as the reason for the restoration of the law that was struck down in federal court.

“In the wake of the tragic mass shootings in Uvalde, Texas, Tulsa, Oklahoma, and in so many other cities across the U.S., and a week after a shooting injured four in Honolulu – it is more important than ever that the state of Hawaii takes action against gun violence,” Ige said in the release. “Hawaii has one of the lowest rates of gun violence in America, and this new law is key in helping law enforcement keep our communities safe.”

Under Ige’s administration, Hawaii has enacted gun safety legislation that includes the Extreme Risk Law, which “allows someone to petition a court to disarm a person in crisis,” according to the release. Another law alerts law enforcement when anyone prohibited from owning a firearm attempts to buy one. Hawaii, according to the release, also joined other states in “prohibiting ghost guns and the manufacture or purchase of parts for the purpose of assembling a ghost gun.”