Through this resolution, City Council members would urge City Manager Spencer Cronk to explore options that would reduce the sale of the aforementioned weapons. After Council Member Mackenzie Kelly raised some questions about the legality of the issue, the agenda item passed 10-1 with only Kelly opposing the motion to pass.
Since the resolution was approved, Cronk must present any options he finds to the council for review no later than July 26.
Kelly said this resolution violates state preemption law and would potentially result in being sued by Attorney General Ken Paxton and campaigned that those in support advocate for it on the state or federal level.
Kelly also expressed concern that passing this resolution would cause local businesses to sue the city.
Lee Crawford from the city law department said a business' ability to sue the city is speculative, but there would be two possible routes that businesses could take if they chose to sue the city over the council's decision: defense to prosecution or affirmative defense.
Two of the resolution's sponsors, Mayor Pro Tem Alison Alter and Council Member Paige Ellis, had different opinions than Kelly, with Ellis saying that in order to buy a handgun, one has to be 21, but in order to buy an AR-15 one can be 18.
“We are elected to lead, and there are people who are not leading, and that’s not how we do things in the city of Austin,” Ellis said.
Alter said this resolution was an issue of life and death.
“We have a responsibility to do something,” Alter said. “We find ways all the time to push the envelope, and we have to push the envelope here.”
