SANTA FE, N.M. (KRQE) – The House Consumer and Public Affairs Committee heard a slew of gun bills Tuesday, including bills to create a two-week waiting period and the permit-less carry of guns. In addition to those, two bills make it illegal to have a large-capacity gun magazine and assault weapons: House Bill 50 and House Bill 101.

Many in the audience, including officials, voiced their opinions on this matter. “You don’t need these huge magazines to hunt with, you don’t need these huge magazines to defend your home. The only time you need these huge magazines, quite frankly, to defend your home is if there is a SWAT team perhaps outside,” said Bernalillo County District Attorney Sam Bregman.

“The New Mexico State Constitution states: the right to bear arms shall not be infringed upon, and legislation like this is a declaration of war against law-abiding, god-fearing, gun-wielding Americans,” one audience member said.

Senator Linda Lopez (D-Albuquerque), co-sponsor of HB 50, asked to roll it over and merge it with House Bill 101. The chair of the committee allowed this.

House Bill 101 outlaws large-capacity magazines and assault weapons, with few exceptions. ‘Large capacity’ is defined in the bill as being able to hold more than 10 rounds. If passed, it would require anyone with them to either surrender them to law enforcement, sell them back to a firearms dealer, or get them out of the state.

While some in the audience did speak in support of these bills, an overwhelming majority of the audience came to speak out against them. “If someone threatens to reach into my gun cabinet and threatens to take away several thousand dollars’ worth of my personal belongings, I would consider that thievery,” one audience member said.

“If I’m sitting at home, and I’m with two little kids and I hear somebody crack my sliding glass windows, I don’t want to have a .22 caliber pistol with nine shots in it. I want to have a nice big rifle that has been extended for my tiny little, short dinosaur arms so that I can shoot the bad guys. Thank you,” said another.

In the end, an amended version of House Bill 101 passed on a 4 to 2 vote; it now heads to the House Judiciary Committee.