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Should Texas Lawmakers Give Gun Makers a Tax Break?

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A bill offering incentives to attract manufacturers of guns, ammo and related hardware to Texas will go to the full Senate for a vote.

SB 1467 would offer tax breakers to firearms makers at a time when other states may shy away from sponsoring the industry and the bill’s author, Senator Craig Estes of Wichita Falls, calls laws that limit firearms manufacturing “unwarranted intrusions.”

“Texas remains a state open to business, committed to free market principles and supportive of its citizens’ constitutional rights, especially the Second Amendment," Estes said. "We should welcome these companies that are apparently unwelcome in other states.”

States like Colorado and California already have laws that ban high-capacity ammunition magazines. If passed, the bill will use funds from the Texas Enterprise Fund to attract manufacturers to the state.

SB 1467 passed the Senate Agriculture, Rural Affairs and Homeland Security Committee with a 3-0 vote. The Senate will vote on the bill in the next few weeks.

Andrew Weber is a general assignment reporter for KUT, focusing on criminal justice, policing, courts and homelessness in Austin and Travis County. Got a tip? You can email him at aweber@kut.org. Follow him on Twitter @England_Weber.
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