Rep. Matt Marshall fights to stop bills that would erode Second Amendment rights, allow COVID-19-style vaccine mandates

During a lengthy debate in the early morning hours, Rep. Matt Marshall, R-Eatonville, stood firmly against House Bill 1163, a bill that would severely erode the Second Amendment rights of Washingtonians by mandating a permit-to-purchase program to buy a firearm.

“By adopting this amendment, we are telling our veterans that their training and service was enough, and we respect it,” argued Marshall during a debate on an amendment that would exempt veterans from the live-fire safety training required under the bill to get a permit.

Marshall also fought for amendments to reduce the costs and fees associated with the permit-to-purchase program.

“People are having a real hard time right now making ends meet. And those people that are feeling it the most are also people that may live in communities where they need to be able to defend themselves, and this is creating a roadblock to their ability to do that,” said Marshall. “We must make sure that we don’t impede an individual’s right to defend themselves, and this amendment, if we adopt it, we’ll make sure that we we decrease that cost to a reasonable amount,” he said during debate.

Marshall, an Army veteran and staunch supporter of the U.S. and Washington state Constitutions, says the state already has some of the most restrictive firearm laws in the nation that erode Second Amendment rights, adding that the policies under House Bill 1163 are a dangerous overreach that punish law-abiding citizens, do nothing to improve public safety, and cost the state millions of dollars in the face of a budget crisis due to costs associated with the lawsuit the bill is sure to bring.

“I’m seeing is us trying to pass more legislation to help with public safety. We are trying to create registries to help with public safety. What we’re doing is we’re doubling down on failed policy,” said Marshall. “These are constitutional rights. We don’t have the authority to legislate in this manner.”

House Republicans offered dozens of amendments on the bill, but all were rejected by majority Democrats. The bill passed along party lines.

Shortly after the firearms bill passed, Marshall also fought fiercely against House Bill 1531, a Democrat bill that would open the door to future vaccine mandates such as those during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“What we learned from COVID-19, is if we react swiftly and harshly, we don’t always get it right,” he argued. “And taking a pause and just making sure that we focus on the damage that can happen based on our response is really where we need to be so we can inform the public and allow them to make their own decisions.”

Marshall, a medical professional, also pointed to the erosion of public trust due to pandemic vaccine mandates.

“We need our health department not to mandate,” said Marshall. “We need them to inform and allow informed decisions.”

Marshall, along with other House Republicans, offered multiple amendments to ensure the creation of a robust exemption policy and the use of trusted peer-reviewed science to better protect Washingtonians from being forced to get vaccinations before full scientific data was available on potential side effects. All were rejected by majority Democrats.

Watch Rep. Marshall fight to protect Second Amendment rights

Watch Rep. Marshall argue against future vaccine mandates

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Washington State House Republican Communications
houserepublicans.wa.gov