BONNEY LAKE, Wash. — There's more fallout coming from Washington's ban on assault weapons which became law in April.
Pawn shops that take firearms as collateral are unsure if they can give the gun back to its owner or sell it if the customer does not pay off their loan.
"Now, I'm stuck with something I can't transfer or sell," said Chad Bare, a manager at Pistole Annie's Jewelry & Pawn. "It just sits here."
Bare said the ban, which is being challenged in court, has already cost their business thousands of dollars. He estimates they have $50,000 in unsold inventory. The pawn shop collateral issue, Bare said, feels like an insult to injury.
"It's frustrating and it's stressful," Bare said.
"An average person should be able to read the bill and say, 'oh, I'm exempt. Oh, this is covered,'" Sen. Phil Fortunato said of the assault weapons ban law.
Fortunato, who represents parts of King and Pierce County, said the issue at hand could have been cleared up if an amendment he put forth had been accepted.
"Pawns are exempt from this because if they pawn it, it's not a sale and they're getting their firearm back," Fortunato said.
Because it was not accepted, the senator said he will have to continually ask Attorney General Bob Ferguson for an opinion, to bring more clarity to the law.
Ferguson's office put on the request for public comments on May 16. You may provide your comments to the Attorney General’s Office by e-mail to OpinionComments@atg.wa.gov or by writing to the Office of the Attorney General, Solicitor General Division, Attention Opinions Chief, PO Box 40100, Olympia WA 98504-0100.
Any comments received before an opinion is issued will be considered. You are encouraged to get in your comment as soon as possible.