Gloria bill that would end gun shows at Del Mar Fairgrounds advances past Senate committee

By By Charles T. Clark

June 12, 2019 4:14 AM PT

Todd Gloria’s bill to prohibit sales of guns and ammunition at the Del Mar Fairgrounds in 2021 received approval from the Senate’s Public Safety Committee on Tuesday, June 11.

After the five-to-two vote in the Senate Public Safety Committee, the bill advances to the Senate’s Appropriations Committee. The bill passed in the State Assembly in April.

“This is another win for gun sense and making our communities safer,” said Gloria in a news release.

“Gun violence continues to plague our nation on a daily basis. We must acknowledge the inextricable link between the number of guns in our communities and the amount of gun violence we see. This bill addresses this reality, abides by the concerns of the community, and helps ensure the State is not allowing or profiting off gun sales on public land. In California, we value people over guns, and this bill makes that clear.”

The approval from the Senate Public Safety Committee brightens the outlook for gun safety advocates who have fought to permanently end the Crossroads of the West Gun Show at the Del Mar Fairgrounds.

For most of its 30-year history the Crossroads’ gun show has drawn thousands of attendees. After a mass shooting a a Parkland, Fla. high school killed 17, the agricultural board that runs Del Mar Fairgrounds stopped the gun show after Dec. 31, 2018.

Despite opposition from the National Rifle Association and Gun Owners of California, which made defeating the bill a priority, Gloria’s bill appears positioned to make its way through the Senate. Democrats possess a 29-11 majority there and Senate President Pro Tempore Toni Atkins is a longtime ally of Gloria, endorsing him in his 2020 bid for San Diego mayor in March.

The NRA and Gun Owners of California appear to have a few allies in the Senate. Nine Republican senators and one Democratic senator have received “A” ratings from Gun Owners of California, for instance.

-- Charles T. Clark is a reporter for The San Diego Union-Tribune