Is this saying that the state now controls all gun laws, not the cities? This is not good. We the People ....
From the article:"The story begins in 1987, when the Florida Legislature passed a law saying it controls "the whole field of regulation of firearms and ammunition."
Just in case that wasn't clear, the law spelled out that this power was "to the exclusion of all existing and future county, city, town, or municipal ordinances." It made exceptions for the Florida Constitution and "general law."
Uhhh, the (restrictive) local ordinances were enacted by local councils and politicians not We the People. The conservative state Representatives outlawed such local decrees as being violations of state firearms laws. That’s the We the People representation.
FL firearms law is the purview of the state not localities. The state Reps realize criminals will obtain firearms outside localities where they are restricted. They also understand the rationale that someone willing to break the law and harm others is also willing to break the law and use a firearm to do so. Restricting firearms only affects the intended victims of violent crime, the law-abiding citizens.
The State of Florida is a organic, sovereign entity crated by the People of Florida and the US Congress . The cities and counties of Florida are not.
They are creations of the State and owe their existence to laws passed by the Legislature of Florida under authority granted to it by the Constitution of Florida.
Except as restricted by the Constitution of Florida, Legislature has the authority to create or abolish local governments and to set the limits of their authority. It is well with in the purview of the Legislature to restrict firearms laws to the state and prohibit the cities from creating firearms ordinances.