“You need a bill in order to vote, and the governor has given no language or detail of what he wants voted on aside from vague bans,” said GOP Speaker of the House Rep. Lisa Demuth, seen here overseeing business at the State Capitol on June 9. (Richard Tsong-Taatarii/The Minnesota Star Tribune)
Walz said he would propose a package of gun bills that includes an assault rifle ban in the days after the shooting at Annunciation, but he has yet to release his list of proposals.
House Republicans released a plan earlier this month that includes more school security funding, school resource officers and funding for mental health treatment beds, as well as mandatory minimum prison sentences for repeat gun offenders.
Their proposals did not address access to firearms. Walz called that a major sticking point.
“The ability to fire 116 rounds in 90 seconds into a church full of children is something,” Walz said, emphasizing the carnage that powerful assault weapons can inflict.
“The vast majority of the people of Minnesota want to see us do something on this. We should be able to get together and do that,” he said.
But it’s not clear if Democrats have enough votes in their own ranks to pass the gun bills that Walz and top DFLers want. Some Senate Democrats have not pledged their votes for new gun restrictions.
DFL Sen. Judy Seeberger, who won a close east-metro suburb race in 2022, told the Minnesota Star Tribune earlier this month that she thought a “comprehensive package,” including mental health funding and “holding violent offenders accountable,” would have the best shot at passing the closely divided Legislature.
Sen. Rob Kupec, a Democrat from Moorhead, told the news outlet MinnPost that he doubts a state-level assault weapon ban would help since Minnesotans could go to other states to buy the firearms.
House DFL Leader Zack Stephenson, of Coon Rapids, said every member of his caucus is ready to vote for an assault weapons ban. The House DFL’s former leader, Melissa Hortman, was shot and killed in her home in June.
“Melissa Hortman was killed in an act of gun violence,” Stephenson said. “For our caucus, this is a very personal issue and very important to us.”
Rep. Zack Stephenson, DFL-Coon Rapids, left, listens to House DFL leader Rep. Melissa Hortman during a news conference in February. Hortman was assassinated at her home in June. (Leila Navidi/The Minnesota Star Tribune)
Stephenson conceded that it would be unusual for the governor to call a special session without bipartisan agreement on what to act on, though he said it is “100% [Walz’s] prerogative and he has indicated that he is open to doing that.”
Stephenson said the issue won’t go away even if special session talks fizzle. Lawmakers will return to the Capitol for their regular session in February, and Stephenson vowed that his caucus would continue to make it a top priority.