After retaking the Michigan government for the first time in four decades, Democrats have enacted sweeping changes throughout the state — passing new tax credits, repealing right to work and appropriating hundreds of millions for state projects.
Now that the initial flurry of legislation is passed, Democrats have turned to a set of policies that long were impossible to entertain with Republican opposition: gun control.
The recent push gained urgency after the Feb. 13 shooting at Michigan State University that killed three students and wounded five more. And while opponents say that the proposals place an undue burden on lawful gun owners, Democrats say that they’re moving the state in the right direction when it comes to public safety.
So far, the legislature has only passed one set of gun bills, with two more major packages still being considered. Here is a look at each of the 11 bills currently on the table and what they would do.
Extreme risk protection orders
In what has become the most high-profile proposal of the slate, Senate Bill 83 would establish a “red flag law,” allowing the creation of an “extreme risk protection order.”
The protection order would prevent an individual from possessing or purchasing firearms for at least a year following a complaint being filed and at least one court hearing. An initial hearing would have to take place within 24 hours, but the court could issue a ruling without notifying the individual when they believe “imminent and irreparable injury” would result from the delay.
A subsequent hearing would be required within 14 days if a protection order is issued. For protection orders against law enforcement and corrections officers, a hearing would have to be held within five days.
Under a protection order, an individual’s guns, ammunition and concealed carry license would be confiscated by a law enforcement agency, to be returned once the order expires. People under an order would be barred from purchasing firearms.
There are limits to who can seek a protection order. Petitions for such orders could be brought by an individual’s spouse, former spouse, someone who has a child with them, a current or former dating partner, roommate or former roommate, family member, guardian of the respondent, law enforcement officer or mental health professional.
The court could use various information to make a determination, including the individual’s history of or threats of violence, mental illness, issuance and violation of previous extreme risk protection or restraining orders, violation of parole or probation, criminal charges for assault against a spouse or partner, evidence of recent excessive alcohol or drug use, reckless or unlawful use or display of a deadly weapon, and any firearm or ammunition purchases made in the previous 180 days.
Courts may also consider “any additional information the court finds to be reliable, including a statement by the (person seeking the order), or relevant information from family and household members…” along with “any other facts that the court believes are relevant.”
Upon being served with an extreme risk protection order, an individual would have 24 hours to surrender weapons to a local law enforcement agency. The court could also rule the guns must be provided immediately. If an individual doesn’t comply they could face a 93-day jail sentence and a one-year extension of the order.
Violating an extreme risk protection order also carries the possibility of 93 days in jail and a $500 fine. A second violation could result in four years in prison and a $2,000 fine, while subsequent violations could lead to five years in prison and a $20,000 fine. An individual who intentionally makes a false report is subject to the same penalties.
People could request a hearing to rescind the order beginning three months after its issuance, in which they would have to prove “a material change in circumstances.”
SB 84 updates Michigan’s other gun laws, while SB 85 adds the violations to Michigan’s criminal code.
No fees will be passed onto an individual receiving a protection order, according to SB 86.
The proposal has drawn criticism from Republicans, including the official Michigan GOP social media accounts that equated the proposal to Nazi policies that preceded the Holocaust.
Kristina Karamo, chairperson of the Michigan Republican Party, called Gov. Gretchen Whitmer an “aspiring tyrant” and said in a statement that she would “not be silent as the Democratic Party, the party who fought to enslave Black Americans, and currently fights to murder unborn children, (attempts) to disarm us.”
Lt. Gov. Garlin Gilchrist said in a March press conference said that emergency risk protection orders help family or friends ensure that perceived risks don’t “escalate further through the use of a firearm.”
Each of the measures passed in the Senate on party-line votes. They have yet to be considered in the House.
Safe storage
SB 79 would establish safe storage laws for those who know or “reasonably should know that a minor is, or is likely to be, present on the premises.”
Under the bill, firearms must be stored in a locked box or container meant for gun storage, or left unloaded and with a device that makes pulling the trigger impossible.
The rules also apply to gun owners entering the premises of other people — they must lock the gun in a secure box or leave it unloaded with a lock or other anti-firing device. They can also opt to leave the weapon in their vehicle, but must store it in a locked box or with a locking device in that vehicle.
The regulations would not explicitly apply in homes or areas where minors are not expected to be present.
The circumstances described in the bill reflect the November 2021 Oxford High School shooting, in which 15-year-old Ethan Crumbley killed four other students and injured seven. His parents, James and Jennifer Crumbley, bought a weapon for their son but allegedly left it improperly stored.
In the proposed bill, if a weapon isn’t safely stored or locked and a minor obtains the weapon, the responsible adult may face up to 93 days in jail and/or a $500 fine.
If a minor obtains the weapon and injures themselves or someone else, the responsible person could face five years in prison and/or a $5,000 fine. If a minor obtains the gun and “inflicts serious impairment of a body function” upon themself or another, the sentence rises to 10 years in prison and/or a $7,500 fine.
And if a minor obtains the firearm and kills someone or themselves, an adult could face up to 15 years in prison and $10,000 in fines. SB 80 updates Michigan’s criminal code.
Under current Michigan laws, the Crumbley’s are facing four charges of involuntary manslaughter that carry a prison sentence of up to 15 years. They’ve pleaded not guilty to all charges, while their son pleaded guilty in 2022 and faces life in prison.
The safe storage bill leaves specific exceptions for minors who may use firearms in specific circumstances. A minor must receive their parent’s permission, use the weapon with their supervision (or the supervision of any adult authorized by their parent) and it must be used in the course of the minor’s employment, farming activities or target practice or firearm instruction.
Minors may also obtain and use firearms for hunting under previous hunting regulations. If a minor unlawfully obtains an adult’s weapon, the adult is not held liable. And if the gun is obtained by a minor who acts lawfully in self-defense, the adult is also not liable.
The bill also instructs the Department of Health and Human services to publish literature about safe storage regulations and possible punishments.
The safe storage package also includes SB 81 and SB 82, which would exempt safe storage products from the state’s sales and use taxes. The exemption would continue through the end of 2024 and does not include primarily-glass display cases.
Each of the bills passed through the House with some Republican support, including Republican Leader Matt Hall. They also passed through the Senate and will likely be signed into law by Whitmer.
Universal background checks
SB 76 would extend background checks currently applied to pistol sales to all firearms, and include the private transfer of guns.
The bill replaces many mentions of “pistol” with “firearm” to apply the previous regulations to all guns. It also clarifies that individuals can’t acquire firearms without proper licensing.
Under current Michigan law, only sales through federally licensed firearms dealers must include a background check; sales or transfers from private sellers don’t require one.
According to the Giffords Law Center, background checks in Michigan requested by licensed dealers are processed through the FBI.
Purchasers who buy a handgun from a non-licensed dealer are required to receive a handgun purchase license or a concealed carry license. Purchase licenses require a background check that goes through the Michigan State Police and require a check for each license, while concealed carry licenses require one check every five years that goes through the state’s network and FBI database.
Private transfers of long guns currently are not subject to any checks.
The bill also requires a seller of a firearm to provide a copy of the transaction to local authorities.
SB 77 updates the Michigan penal code to match the bill, changing “pistol” to “firearm” and referring to the newly numbered law. SB 78 updates the Michigan criminal code to extend the punishment for forgery on pistol license applications and pistol sales records to apply to all firearms — the maximum penalty for each offense remains up to four years in prison.
“These bills save lives by ensuring people convicted of violent crimes like domestic violence can not purchase guns and cause more harm,” said Senate Majority Leader Winnie Brinks in a March press conference. “Isn’t that just common sense?”
The bills have been passed in the Senate on party-line votes but have yet to be considered in the House.
Possible future regulations
Numerous bills have passed at least one chamber of the Legislature, with the rest likely passing and being signed into law in the coming weeks.
House Speaker Joe Tate, D-Detroit, said the proposals are “certainly the floor and not the ceiling” at a press conference before their passage. Here are several bills that have been introduced in the House, each with varying levels of support.
- HB 4203 and 4204 would raise the minimum age for purchasing firearms from 18 to 21.
- HB 4127 and 4128 would ban firearms at or near polling places, absentee ballot counting boards, early voting sites and ballot drop boxes.
- HB 4211 would establish a 14-day waiting period between purchasing a firearm and obtaining the weapon.
- HB 4198 would allow Michigan municipalities to ban the open carry of firearms within their jurisdictions.