EAST LANSING, Mich. — Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signed bills to combat gun violence Thursday, two months after a mass shooting on the campus of Michigan State University left three students dead and five injured.
Whitmer, a Democrat, approved the measures that have been sought by members of her party for years during an event at MSU.
The proposals, which take effect next year, will expand background check requirements for firearm purchases and institute new storage standards for guns kept in homes where children are present.
"All of these initiatives are supported by a majority of Michiganders," Whitmer said. "I've gotten letters from all across our state asking for us to get this done."
Republican lawmakers have contended the bills won't prevent future shootings but will infringe on constitutional rights.
Hundreds of people gathered Thursday morning inside Spartan Stadium for the governor's bill signing ceremony, including Democratic lawmakers and supporters of the group Moms Demand Action. Passage of the bills followed weeks of protests at the state Capitol, where students called on lawmakers to take action to respond to the violence at MSU.
To start the event Thursday, Lt. Gov. Garlin Gilchrist II asked for a moment of silence to remember those lost to gun violence.
"Out of that silence comes action," Gilchrist said.
"It's a new day," Gilchrist added.
The bill signing occurred 59 days after the MSU shooting — the campus is about four miles east of the Capitol building — and 499 days after a 15-year-old boy killed four fellow students at Oxford High School in Oakland County.
Whitmer said the bills would take Michigan one step closer to having "common sense gun policy."
"Gun violence is a scourge that is unique to this country and that's why we are taking action," Whitmer said.
At the time of the Oxford shooting, Republicans controlled the Legislature and declined to take up gun control bills. Democrats won majorities in the House and Senate for the first time in 40 years in the November election, providing a political path for the proposals to get to Whitmer.
"We don't have to live like this," Whitmer said, "and today we're showing we don't have to anymore."
Jo Kovach, MSU's student body president, said the legislation marked the first step toward making
"Something that all 40,000 of us know is that we never want anyone else to have to go through what we've gone through," Kovach said.
Michigan law currently requires an individual to obtain a license before purchasing a pistol, which forces buyers to undergo a criminal background check. But long guns purchased from private sellers can be transferred without a criminal history check.
"That doesn't make any sense," Whitmer said Thursday.
The current background check prevents people with a previous felony on their record or a court order for involuntary hospitalization related to mental health from owning a piston, according to an analysis by the nonpartisan Senate Fiscal Agency.
Under the new measures, the licensing and background check requirements would be expanded to all types of firearms. But the change wouldn't apply to purchases that occurred before the bill's effective date.
The background check bills exempt people under the age of 18 who use their guns for hunting or who possess the guns under the supervision of a parent or guardian.
The storage bills would require individuals who have firearms at home where a minor is present to keep the guns in a locked box or have them unloaded and locked.
Rep. Ranjeev Puri, D-Canton, said he was proud the state was taking steps to "curb senseless gun violence.""Safe storage and mandatory background checks will save lives," Puri said.
A third set of so-called "red flag" bills would allow a spouse, family member, a former spouse or a mental health professional to seek a court order temporarily barring someone from owning or purchasing a firearm. The Michigan House is poised to vote on those bills as soon as today.
Whitmer said Thursday she looks forward to signing the bill.
"We've heard too many times about family and friends express concern about shooters without any action taken," Whitmer said.
Sen. Rosemary Bayer, D-West Bloomfield, said she was sorry it had taken so long for lawmakers to act.
"Today, we're taking action," Bayer said, receiving applause from the crowd.
