A House Democrat wants to impose a 1000 percent tax on AR-15 in response to the deadly mass shootings that happened this year.
Rep. Don Beyer, D-Va., is seeking to draft a measure increasing the excise taxes on assault weapons by 1,000 percent.
Although the bill could pass through the House of Representatives, it’s quite impossible that it will garner votes from the Republican members.
“What it’s intended to do is provide another creative pathway to actually make some sensible gun control happen. We think that a 1,000% fee on assault weapons is just the kind of restrictive measure that creates enough fiscal impact to qualify for reconciliation.” Beyer claimed.
In an analysis released by NBC in its news report, the AR-15s range in price anywhere from $500 to $2000, depending on the location where you’ll buy the weapon. But, a 1000 percent tax on the weapon would mean a final sales price of $5,000 to $20,000.
However, Beyer revealed that he’s still open to negotiations.
“There’s nothing magical about that thousand percent number. It’s severe enough to actually inhibit and restrict sales. But also successful enough that it’s not seen as an absolute ban.” Beyer added.
Following Beyer’s statement, Robert McClelland, a senior fellow at the Urban-Brookings Tax Policy Center responded and said that “we don’t have a lot of information on what would happen if gun taxes are raised. But a gun tax at 1,000% — I can’t see how it would not dissuade some people from purchasing a taxed firearm.”
Meanwhile, Beyer made it clear that the U.S. Military and the law enforcements across the country would be subject to the tax.
He also made it clear that the tax will only be imposed on future assault weapon sales and guns that are used for hunting and other recreational purposes would be exempt if the bill passes.
However, despite Beyer’s intent to push the regulation, many still believe that his proposal will likely get rejected by his fellow democrats.
“Beyer’s steep tax bill is likely to face staunch pushback from Democrats as they face strong headwinds in the upcoming midterms.” The newsmax wrote.
