ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10) — Gun violence continues to go down across New York, according to Governor Kathy Hochul. But at a press conference on Tuesday morning, she said a tiny piece of 3D-printed plastic could cause those numbers to reverse significantly.
It’s called a Glock switch. Hochul said it “can turn a gun magazine to have the the capacity to shoot 1,200 rounds per minute. And that is extraordinary.”
As part of the state budget, Hochul is proposing a requirement that gun manufacturers who sell in the state of New York have to design pistols that are incompatible with illegal switches. Just like with ghosts gun components, Hochul’s team says these switches can be made on 3D printers.
To combat that, “I’m proposing that all 3D printers that are sold in the state have blocking software that would make it impossible to print ghost gun components and illegal switches,” stated Hochul.
This would be done in phases. The first would be to consult with experts and the second would be to create recommendations for regulations.
“So right now, our legislation as we proposed it doesn’t prescribe in particular how that has to go. It is just that printers sold in New York State will have to have this technology,” explained Sabrina Bierer, the deputy secretary for public safety.
Just how the technology would actually work depends on what lawmakers agree on.
Governor Hochul plans to get her proposals through the legislature next week. She said that gun lobbies are against them in defense of second amendment rights.
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