On Tuesday the Pima County Board of Supervisors made it illegal to use or sell mixed exploding targets in a number of circumstances, though the revised ordinance allows for a number of exemptions.
As originally proposed, the ordinance banned the use and sale of all exploding targets in unincorporated Pima County and would have made it illegal to even possess βchemical or material intended to be used as an exploding target.β
After changes were made, Todd Rathner, of the Arizona State Rifle and Pistol Association, said the approved ordinance accomplishes what the county wanted, but also protects gun owners, retailers and manufacturers.β
Exploding targets have been implicated in a handful of recent wildfires and other public safety incidents, county officials said.
The sale of exploding targets, or binary targets, is permissible under the ordinance as long as the component chemicals remain unmixed, according to a press release provided by Rathner.
Any sale to minors is prohibited.
The ordinance also allows for the use of exploding targets on private land as long as fire restrictions are not in place and state gun laws are followed.
Their use on public land is also allowed with the same limitations, as well as the requirement that exploding targets are not prohibited by any state or federal law or regulation.
The two βnoβ votes came from supervisors Steve Christy, who described it as βanother chipping away of the Second Amendment, and Ally Miller. Violations of the ordinance will be a misdemeanor.
