New York Set to Pass Tougher Gun Restrictions

1/15/2013 (Updated 9:42:56 PM)

New York is now the first state in the country to tighten gun restrictions since the Newtown school shooting in December.

Governor Cuomo signed the New York Safe Act late Tuesday afternoon soon after the state assembly passed the bill.

The act includes measures that would limit the maximum number of rounds a magazine could hold to seven from ten, and require background checks for all gun sales, even private person-to-person sales.

Every state legislator from the Southern Tier voted no on the bill.

"This bill attempts to make changes to New York's gun laws, to our criminal justice system, and to our mental health laws as well. And I had a very difficult time making the types of sweeping changes to all of these systems in one bill," said Assemblywoman Donna Lupardo.

"This legislation basically is an imposition on a lot of law-abiding people and businesses. So it's really just a feel-good bill basically for political gain to say we're the first state in the nation to ban some of these weapons," said Assemblyman Clifford Crouch.

Lupardo says she likes many parts of the bill but had a problem with the process, specifically the lack of public comment.

According to crouch, the law also includes a provision that requires people to re-register their pistol permit every five years or face a misdemeanor charge.

State Senator Tom Libous voted no on the bill last night. In a statement he said,"While parts of the bill make sense, other parts violate our Constitutional rights and limit individuals from protecting themselves and their families."

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