Lake County Gazette

Benjamin Tactical Inc., of Libertyville, is taking a stand against HB5855, the Protect Illinois Communities Act.

The company, at 640 Ridgewood Lane, recently posted a list of grievances on its website. It sees the measure as a political war declared on law-abiding gun owners. Favoring HB5855, according to Benjamin Tactical, “Demonstrates an abysmal knowledge of basic firearm facts. Proponents do not know what they do not know."

“(The bill) demonstrates the proponents’ true intentions of disarming law-abiding citizens," Benjamin Tactical Inc., continued. "Gun owners are repeatedly told that new laws are only to support 'gun safety,' 'responsible ownership' and 'keeping guns out of the hands of people who shouldn’t have them.' This bill does none of these. It is an undeniable attack on law-abiding gun owners, their personal property, and the 2nd Amendment. If passed, any trust or collaboration between gun owners and so-called 'common sense gun safety' proponents will be destroyed.” 

State Rep. Dan Swanson (R-Alpha) said HB5855 will have an immediate economic impact on Illinois’ arms manufacturers and hunting stores. 

“Springfield Armory and Rock River Arms are manufacturers of guns. L.W. Schneider is a manufacturer of parts for guns. They manufacture parts of Springfield Armory or Rock River arms or other arms dealers would use in their manufacturing of their guns,” Swanson said. “So we're talking north of 1,000 employees between those three businesses that would be affected and then take it that second and third order effect. If there's no guns in Illinois, what's going to happen to those mom and pop sports stores there on the street corner?”

HB5855 would outlaw several types of common gun and magazines and create a registry whereby gun owners must inventory their guns. The bill would also disallow those under 21 from purchasing weapons and from hunting alone. 

A vote on the bill in the House is expected on Jan. 11. 

Glenn Garamoni, president of the State Line Rifle Association of Illinois, said the bill will affect arms manufacturers in the state even if shipping guns out of state. “(The bill) provides NO exemption for federally licensed firearms dealers and manufacturers in Illinois. Goodbye to many jobs in Illinois at Springfield Armory, Rock River Arms, DS Arms, Rock Island Armory, Krebs Custom, and Benjamin Tactical Inc. to name a few,” Garamoni said, Lake County Gazette reported.

House Minority Leader Tony McCombie (R-Savannah) suggested the bill is unconstitutional. “While HB 5855 is likely far from in its final form, the constitutionality of the bill will certainly go before the courts,” McCombie told Prairie State Wire.