Lawmaker: If Health Care Required, Why Not Guns?

OFF THE WIRE
Lawmaker: If Health Care Required, Why Not Guns?


http://www.keloland.com/NewsDetail6162.cfm?Id=110128

PIERRE, SD - If the federal government can require every person to buy health insurance, a South Dakota lawmaker says the state can require every person to buy a gun.
That's the logic behind a bill proposed by Rep. Hal Wick, a Republican from Sioux Falls. Wick's proposal would force every South Dakotan over the age of 21 to buy a firearm for self-defense. He argues that such a requirement makes sense to "provide for everyone's protection," just as supporters of the health care legislation say all Americans need coverage.
Wick says he believes the bill won't pass but he introduced it to make the point that the health care mandate is unconstitutional. South Dakota is among 26 states that have sued the federal government over the health care overhaul.

The bill in question;
HB 1237:
FOR AN ACT ENTITLED, An Act to provide for an individual mandate to adult citizens to provide for the self defense of themselves and others.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF SOUTH DAKOTA:

Section 1. Not later than January 1, 2012, each citizen residing in the state of South Dakota who has attained the age of twenty-one years shall purchase or otherwise acquire a firearm suitable to their temperament, physical capacity, and personal preference sufficient to provide for their ordinary self-defense.

Section 2. After January 1, 2012, each citizen residing in the state of South Dakota shall comply with the provisions of this Act within six months of attaining the age of twenty-one years.

Section 3. The provisions of this Act do not apply to any person who is disqualified from possessing a firearm pursuant to §§ 22-14-15, 22-14-15.1, or 22-14-15.2.