Article from The Washington Free Beacon by Stephen Gutkowski.

Virginia house Democrats passed a bill on Tuesday banning the sale of “assault weapons” and calling for the confiscation of magazines capable of holding more than 12 rounds.

The bill would outlaw new sales of some of the country’s most popular firearms, including the AR-15. It would also make possession of ammunition magazines capable of holding more than 12 rounds punishable by up to one year in prison even if the magazines were legally purchased.

The bill, known as HB961, passed the House of Delegates by a vote of 51 to 48 with all Republicans and several Democrats voicing opposition. It is the most controversial measure Democratic lawmakers and Governor Ralph Northam (D.) have advanced since taking control of both houses of the state legislature in November. If signed into law, it would be among the strictest bans in the country.

The National Shooting Sports Foundation, the gun industry’s trade group, estimates that the legislation could affect hundreds of thousands or even millions of Virginians, especially since the vast majority of modern firearms come standard with magazines that hold more than 12 rounds.

Read the entire article at The Washington Free Beacon.

Image Credit: By Cory Doctorow (Flickr) [CC BY-SA 2.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons