Connecticut Dems Introduce Bill to Add 50 Percent Tax on Ammo

A first-term Connecticut lawmaker wants to hike the price of ammunition in the state through the application of a special tax.

State Rep. Jillian Gilchrest, D-Hartford introduced HB 5700 late last month to tack on a 50 percent tax to ammo sales, a move for which she has found co-sponsors for in the state Senate.

In a statement, House Democrats clarified the bill would exclude ammo sales to police and the military. They argued the measure would reduce the rate of gun deaths in the state, which is already low, while conceding some 83 percent of those were attributable to suicides.

“I’m hearing push back about the need to protect one’s home… but how much ammunition does someone really need to do that?” Gilcrest said in a post to social media that was soon bombarded with negative feedback from pro-gun commenters.