Democrats in the Virginia General Assembly reversed course Saturday after initially exempting themselves from the provisions of a gun law they sent to Democratic Virginia Gov. Abby Spanberger.
Democrats have passed multiple gun bills, including a ban on so-called “assault weapons,” and legislation creating new forms of civil liability for firearms manufacturers. One bill, HB110, initially exempted General Assembly members from a prohibition on leaving a firearm in an unattended vehicle.
“The provisions of this section shall not apply to any member of the General Assembly who leaves a handgun in an unattended motor vehicle pursuant to § 18.2-308.7:1 when such vehicle is parked in any parking structure reserved for members of the General Assembly under § 2.2-1172,” the text of the legislation initially sent from a conference committee read.
“We are no better than anybody else, and we should never vote for a bill that gives us a special privilege,” Republican State Sen. Richard Stuart said during debate on the measure. When the conference committee sent the legislation out for passage, the exemption for the General Assembly was deleted, The Center Square reported.