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Reading could become third Pennsylvania city to ban ghost guns after court ruling • Pennsylvania Capital-Star

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READING — Reading City Council took a historic step Monday by banning the sale or transfer of so-called ghost guns — firearms without serial numbers, made from 3D-printed parts, kits or components that can be sold without background checks.

The ordinance was introduced without fanfare or discussion, before a small audience of fewer than five people. But if it passes at the next council meeting, Reading would become the third city in Pennsylvania to enact such a ban.

The move comes at a unique time for Pennsylvania, which has strong preemption laws that prohibit local governments from enacting firearms regulations that are stricter than state law. But a February Commonwealth Court decision upheld Philadelphia’s assault weapons ban, setting the stage for other cities to follow.

York City passed a similar ban in May. Now Reading is set to vote.

“When you look at other cities like Philadelphia and York, the fact that they have (a ban) in place sets a precedent,” Reading City Councilman Jaime Baez Jr. told the Capital-Star. “The main reason is the gun violence that we see and the inability to track those guns.”

The window for such regulation may be small, however. Gun Owners of America, the pro-Second Amendment group that challenged Philadelphia’s ban, has appealed the Commonwealth Court decision to the state Supreme Court. And a pending U.S. Supreme Court case could also have an impact on local laws.

But other cities may be wary as they await an appeal. The Berks County district attorney, for example, warned the Reading City Council last month against passing such a ban before the state Supreme Court rules.

“Anytime we restrict someone’s Second Amendment rights, the burden of proof shifts to the government to prove that there was a proportionate restriction since the Second Amendment was enacted,” Dennis Skayhan, first assistant district attorney for Berks County, told the Reading City Council last month, referring to a recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling.

Brandon Flood, director of government relations for local gun violence prevention group Ceasefire PA, told the Reading City Council last month that he has been talking to multiple local officials across Pennsylvania about similar bans, including in the state capital of Harrisburg.

Reading City Council meeting on Monday 12th August.

A growing problem

In recent years, ghost guns have become a serious issue for both Second Amendment advocates and gun safety reform advocates.

The growing availability of 3D printers and the proliferation of DIY kits have increased their popularity across the country. In many states, such as Pennsylvania, kits can be purchased without background checks and assembled at home.

The U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms reported that the number of ghost guns recovered by law enforcement agencies each year has increased increased drastically In recent years, about 27,600 have been recorded in 2022.

The same applies to the local situation.

For example, the number of police officers in Philadelphia increased from 12 in 2018 to 575 in 2022.

This is according to lawsuit filed by the city against the two largest manufacturers of ghost gun kits in the country, Polymer80 and JSD Supply. That lawsuit ended in a settlement earlier this year, with both companies agreeing to stop selling ghost gun kits in and around Philadelphia.

Reading Police Chief Eli Vazquez told a city council committee earlier this month that the number of ghost guns confiscated by his department has increased annually from four in 2021 to 13 in 2022 and 20 in 2023. In 2024, the number was five.

Numerous states have passed their own bans and regulations on ghost guns. According to Everytown USA, a gun control advocacy group, 15 states have passed some form of ghost gun regulation. States such as California and Illinois, for example, require serial numbers and background checks for purchase.

The Pennsylvania House of Representatives passed Bill with a 104-97 vote in March that would make it a crime to sell or buy ghost guns without serial numbers. Only three House Republicans voted for it, and the state’s Republican-majority Senate has yet to take it up.

“These guns are just too accessible,” said Rep. Morgan Cephas (D-Philadelphia), the bill’s sponsor. “We certainly don’t want to take away these guns. We just want to make sure they’re registered, serialized, and make sure that responsible gun owners have access to them and they don’t end up in the hands of our children and bad actors.”

Cephas cited numerous incidents in Pennsylvania involving ghost guns, including a mass shooting in Philadelphia’s Kingsessing neighborhood last year that left five people dead.

The ATF, under President Joe Biden, has also tried to regulate ghost guns. The agency wrote a rule in 2022 expanding the definition of a firearm to include ghost gun kits, requiring serial numbers and background checks for their sale.

A district court in Texas blocked the rule. But the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to take the case on appeal and allowed the rule to remain in effect.

The irony is that if the U.S. Supreme Court sides with gun advocates and strikes down the federal rule, it could bolster Philadelphia’s defense of its own ban before the state Supreme Court.

The ATF proposes regulating ghost guns by defining them as firearms. But Philadelphia’s argument is that the city’s ban should stand because they are not firearms.

The U.S. Supreme Court, however, has shown no willingness to allow new gun regulations. That may leave the matter to state and local governments.

Josh Fleitman, campaign director for local gun violence prevention organization Ceasefire PA, sees some irony in this.

“Gun rights groups argue that ghost guns are not real guns and therefore should not be subject to the same rules as requiring background checks or serial numbers,” Fleitman said. “We followed that logic and said, ‘OK, if ghost guns are not real guns, then they are not subject to state firearms priority laws.’”

Cephas, the sponsor of a statewide ghost gun bill, hopes local laws will prompt state lawmakers to take action.

“I think it’s a precedent,” Cephas said. “It’s the local communities that want us to take action on an issue that has affected so many people, whether it’s rural, urban or suburban.”