National attention has turned, once again, to the gun debate following the horrific events at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas last month.
One day prior to the school shooting that killed 19 children and 2 adults, the Kansas legislature adjourned without taking action on proposed bills aimed to ban so called “ghost guns,” like the one used in the shooting at Olathe East High School in March of this year.
Ghost guns are firearms that don’t have serial numbers. Usually, they are privately assembled from parts ordered via the internet or 3-D printed. These types of untraceable firearms are virtually impossible to regulate.
Ghost guns are thought to be widespread, and production of them has only increased in recent years. According to a report by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (ATF), about 20,000 were recovered by law enforcement in 2021.
The availability of ghost guns makes it easier for those banned from owning a firearm by Kansas law to gain access to guns — ownership prohibitions include felony convictions, domestic violence offenses and protection orders, substance abuse, extreme mental health diagnoses, and (with some exceptions) possession by a minor under the age of 18.
The ability to purchase gun kits or 3-D printing instructions from the internet circumvent these reasonable restrictions on firearm possession. If most Kansans support the laws that these ghost guns circumvent, then why didn’t the state legislature pass the ban?
In fact, these restrictions — and some even more stringent policies — are extremely popular with Kansas voters.
The 2019 Kansas Speaks survey, conducted by the Docking Institute for Public Affairs at Fort Hays State University, found that 88% of Kansans support requiring background checks on all gun sales — currently Kansas only requires background checks for sales conducted through a licensed dealer. 85.5% supported preventing sales to individuals who have been deemed dangerous by mental health providers. Nearly 74% supported not allowing people who have been convicted of violent misdemeanors to purchase firearms. And just under 70% thought that only those above 21 years of age should be able to purchase a gun.
If most Kansans support the laws that these ghost guns circumvent, then why didn’t the state legislature pass the ban?
Some on the gun safety side of the debate will point to lobbying efforts by gun rights organizations, like the National Rifle Association and similar groups. However, this is an incomplete explanation.
Over the past several years they have been consistently outspent by gun safety groups, like Moms Demand Action. Despite the weakening of the spending power of gun rights groups, their political power is still strong.
Research in political science shows that gun owners participate in politics more than non-owners. They vote, donate money, contact elected officials, and discuss politics more than citizens who don’t own firearms. Especially when it comes to gun issues.
Furthermore, rural gun owners are even more participatory on gun issues than their urban and suburban counterparts.
As such, gun rights organizations don’t have to bother dumping loads of money into the state legislature to prevent the passage of gun safety legislation because their supporters are a well-organized minority.
