This article by Jim Saunders was published in the Orlando Weekly on July 29th, 2019.

State governments don’t just stop at preempting gun laws. For instance, back in 2014, the citizens of Denton, Texas banned hydraulic fracturing within its city limits. Months later the State of Texas stepped in and overruled the local law with House Bill 40. Fracking continues in Denton . . . . the birthplace of hydraulic fracturing.
 
State governments step in to preempt local bans on plastic grocery bags, factory farms, frac-sand mines, living wages, sanctuary cities, rights of nature, and the list goes on and on.
 
In this case a Leon County Circuit Judge ruled in favor of the people in not allowing the state to penalize localities that pass gun laws to protect themselves. — Commentary by Curt Hubatch, Community Rights US Media Team member
 
— A Leon County circuit judge late Friday struck down a state law that threatened tough penalties if city and county officials approve gun regulations.

Florida since 1987 has barred cities and counties from passing regulations that are stricter than state firearms laws. But in 2011, lawmakers went further by approving a series of penalties that local governments and officials could face if they violated the prohibition.

Local governments challenged the 2011 law after last year’s mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland. Leon County Circuit Judge Charles Dodson, in a 15-page ruling Friday, found the law unconstitutional on a series of grounds.

State Rep. Dan Daley, a Coral Springs Democrat who helped challenge the 2011 law while serving as a city official, issued a statement Friday night calling the decision “a major step in the right direction for gun safety advocates, local elected officials, and the state of Florida as a whole.”

“Local elected officials have not just a right, but a responsibility to speak up and advocate for common sense gun reforms in their communities and should be able to do so without fear of penalty or punishment,” Daley said.

Dodson’s ruling did not strike down the underlying 1987 law —- known as a “preemption law” —- that prevents cities and counties from passing gun regulations tougher than state laws.

But the ruling affects the 2011 changes that created a variety of penalties for violating the preemption law. For example, under the 2011 law, local officials could face fines up to $5,000 and potential removal from office. Also, members of the public and organizations could receive damages up to $100,000 and attorney fees if they successfully sued local governments for violations.

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