by Richard Pearson
The recent revelations regarding fund sweeps of monies from the State Police Firearm Services Fund and the State Police Services Fund are a travesty against law-abiding gun owners in Illinois [refer to the Headline News on our website, www.isra.org and please share our FB post]. These revelations are the work of the Illinois State Rifle Association lobbying team. The idea to check out what was happening to gun owners’ money became a discussion in April 2019 when the highly organized and well-funded anti-gunners began pushing the so- called FOID fix bill, which turned out to be a guise to crush firearm ownership. The project to find out what happened to the FOID funds was led by ISRA lobbyist Ed Sullivan. The ISRA has five lobbyists and each one brings different skills to the table. When added together, the ISRA has one of the best, if not the best, pro-gun lobbying teams anywhere. Ed Sullivan is a former Republican Floor Leader and was on the negotiating team when we passed the Illinois Concealed Carry Act in 2013. Remember, we had to override Governor Quinn’s veto to get that done. Ed Sullivan is an example of why experience matters.
12/10/2019 - For Immediate Release
Chatsworth, IL – Nearly $30 million in funds generated by user fees that should be used to reduce the wait time for FOID card applications and for the administration of the Illinois Concealed Carry License (ICCL) program has been diverted to general state spending according to Richard Pearson, Executive Director of the Illinois State Rifle Association.
12/10/2019
The recent revelations regarding fund sweeps of monies from the Firearms Service Fund and the State Police Operations Fund are a travesty against law-abiding gun owners in Illinois.
Nearly $30 million in funds generated by user fees that should be used to reduce the wait time for FOID card applications and for the administration of the Concealed Carry program in Illinois has been diverted to general state spending.
12/6/2019
Thank you to all who purchased tickets for our 116th Anniversary Raffle. The winning ticket numbers can be downloaded with the attachment.
by Richard Pearson
President Barack Obama famously said, “Elections have consequences…” and nothing could make that clearer than the recent elections in Virginia. We are now seeing what many of us have been saying for a long time, which is that Bloomberg, Soros and the rest of the many elitist billionaires are funding a nationwide movement to disarm law-abiding American citizens. The combination of Bloomberg pouring millions into the Virginia elections, poor voter turnout, few strong Second Amendment candidates, and gun owner complacency has created a perfect storm against the Second Amendment in Virginia.
Published in Conservative Firing Line
Democrats are having a free-for-all in Virginia after their big win this fall. Another ridiculous bill has been prefiled to be printed on January 8, 2020. SB 64 outlaws firearms training, and could impact other group sports such as Krav Maga, Jiu-Jitsu, self-defense training, etc. The bill is designed to prohibit paramilitary activity (read that “citizen militias”). But as it stands, it would do a lot more. And turn law abiding Virginians into felons with a snap of the handcuffs.
See original article at https://conservativefiringline.com/virginia-democrats-prefile-sb-64-could-outlaw-firearms-training/
by Richard Pearson
Thanksgiving is here and I want to wish everyone the happiest of Thanksgivings. Sometimes we fail to recognize our blessings or, even worse, take them for granted. I want to assure all of our members, volunteers and those who donate to the cause how thankful we are for you and your support. The Board of Directors, staff and I are thankful for your dedication and commitment to saving the Second Amendment. By working together, we are making a positive difference.