Knife Rights national state knife law preemption campaign was launched in 2010 in Arizona. Preemption protects knife owners, knife collectors and those in the knife industry from a confusing patchwork of local knife ordinances and rules.
Preemption is a key component of Knife Rights’ national legislative agenda to protect knife owners’ rights. The bipartisan passage of Knife Rights Arizona knife preemption law now serves as a model for preemption efforts in other states whose citizens are subject to a similar patchwork of local knife laws with attendant civil rights issues.
It is unreasonable and unrealistic to expect knife owners to constantly maintain detailed knowledge of innumerable local laws in order to stay legal in their state or in transit. “In sates without preemption, a person traveling is the sate may be subject to numerous different knife ordinances and rules along the way, never knowing if they are in compliance with local laws, and quite possibly unintentionally breaking the law,” said Doug Ritter, Chairman and Executive Director of Knife Rights. “This is a confusing and unfair situation which can subject citizens to abuse of their civil rights and it needs to be remedied,” Ritter added.
Preemption keeps all existing state laws regarding knives in place, but make the State Legislature the sole authority on knife laws. This will insure consistency and fairness with regards to knife laws throughout the state.
Knife Rights is embarking on this proactive legislative effort to protect our right to own and carry knives of any kind into the future. The concept of knife law preemption, in essence, says that the state laws relating to knives take precedence and prevents the cities, towns and other political subdivisions of the state from making their own laws relating to knives which are more restrictive than the state law.
This concept has been very successfully promulgated in the fight to protect firearms. Forty six states have enacted firearms preemption laws. These laws have prevented the creation of, or eliminated, a patchwork of ordinances and rules which serve to confuse or entrap those traveling within or through the state. A person traveling in a state without preemption laws could be charged with a violation of law when they have no intention of violating the law. Further, local ordinances often violate the right to bear arms as guaranteed by the Second Amendment and, in many cases, by the state’s own constitution.
Knife Rights’ national strategy is to work to enact knife preemption laws throughout the United States. This would afford the same protection to knife owners that firearms owners enjoy.
Once enacted, preemption also allows Knife Rights to concentrate its limited resources at the state level as it seeks to repeal or ease irrational restrictions on knives.
Knife Rights has passed Knife Law Preemption in the following states so far:
Arizona: 2010
Utah: 2011
New Hampshire: 2011
We need your support to make our National Knife Law Preemption Campaign a success, and insure the rights and freedoms guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution. Please make a donation to Knife Rights Legislative Campaign and help create a Sharper Futureâ„¢ for all Americans.