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Strange shooting range bill in AZ
AZ state rep Pamela Gorman has introduced a "strike everything" amendment to an unrelated bill (a strike everything strikes out all content of the bill and substitutes something else). The amendment would prohibit any subdivision of the state (i.e. counties, maybe cities) from operating a shooting range "under the jurisdiction" of state game and fish. It's also retroactive to Dec. 31 of last year.
Apart from the question of "why?" it's an illustration of why those who like laws or sausage should never watch either being made. What's a range "under the jurisdiction of" game and fish? Is it any range (since they can enforce game and fish laws on the land). Is it any range over which they have some special control? Any range for which they've disbursed a grant? And how and why do you make it retroactive -- how do you stop someone from managing what they've already managed?
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Why does "gut and stuff" even exist as a legislative device anymore? In this day and age of instant information, this trick, which originally was done in smoke-filled rooms behind doors closed to public and press, now has the transparency of cellophane, and simply reeks of corruption.
Don't these politicians ever care for how their constitutients see them?
Why doesn't the muckraking press ever publicize gut and stuff measures as below the belt?
They all are, because they all come at the end of legislative sessions where the opportunity to raises voices and oppose the legislation is crowded off the calendar by the rush to ajournment.
In other places, that particular legislative tactic is known as the "gut 'n stuff".
I know nothing about the local politics, but I think your first commentator has hit it; there is some provision someplace that prohibits local zoning agencies (read: developer's lackeys) from zoning a range out of existance if it's used by Fish and Game folks for training, etc. It's how we killed that same sort of attempted move on my local range, only using LEO training as the trump card.
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