A Democratic lawmaker from Oklahoma is taking on the stereotype that liberals hate guns, love taxes, and suck at pandering to wacko voters.
Yesterday afternoon, the Oklahoma Senate Appropriations Committee advanced SB 50 by a 19-3 margin.
Introduced by Tulsa-area State Rep. Jo Anna Dossett, the bill will create a sales tax exemption in Oklahoma statutes “for the sale of firearm safety devices and gun safety devices,” or as Dossett put it on non-Twitter, “gun safes.”
Isn’t that cool!?
We finally have an Oklahoma Democrat who’s cutting taxes and pandering to gun nuts all in one swoop! That’s a new one.
Maybe next week she’ll keep things going and introduce a bill exempting people from paying income taxes on guns they win a charity raffle! You know, to help the kids raise more money.
This is the second year in a row that Dossett has tried to cut taxes for the Waynes and Garths of the world who have so many guns that it necessitates ownership of an entire rack safe.
Back in 2024, this is how she explained her bill:
“Using tax incentives to promote greater gun safety is something more than a dozen other states are already doing, and additional states are also considering,” Dossett said. “It’s a commonsense approach that can help prevent injuries and deaths.”
Listen, I appreciate Dossett’s attempt to pander to gun owners in the name of public safety. It's honestly nice to see a Democrat try something new, but do we really think this tax break is going to improve anything?
When I was a teenager, one of the coolest things about having a friend whose dad owned a gun safe was going through the gun safe when his dad wasn’t home. Plus, I seriously doubt a tax exemption is going to be the thing that finally convinces Joe Oklahoma Sixpack to take gun safety seriously and put a safety on the loaded AR-15 he leaves on the kitchen counter.
If this is really about preventing injuries and death, Dossett needs to expand the bill to include all items that promote safety.
For example, why not have tax breaks for car seats, swimming pool fences, or the pulleys movers use when hoisting a grand piano into an upstairs apartment over a busy sidewalk?
In fact, maybe we should just have a tax-free safety weekend where all items that can protect a human life are exempt from taxes.
You know, kind like our tax-free back-to-school shopping weekend, but instead of retailers offering deals and discounts on shoes, shirts, and backpacks, they provide unreal discounts on gun safes, life jackets, and bicycle helmets.
Then again, what do I know? I’m just a guy with great ideas—not a Democrat trying to win over gun owners by cutting their taxes in the name of public safety.
Stay with The Lost Ogle. We’ll keep you advised.
