Quote:Erie-based Magpul set to leave Colorado after magazine-limits bill signed into law
Company pledges to begin departure 'almost immediately'
By John Aguilar, Camera Staff Writerdailycamera.com
Posted: 03/20/2013 11:20:22 AM MDT
March 21, 2013 2:0 AM GMT Updated: 03/20/2013 08:00:22 PM MDT
ERIE -- There were no moving trucks pulled up to the door, no lines of employees exiting with boxes of personal effects, no real estate brokers with clipboards doing initial building inspections at this quiet industrial park on Young Court.
Activity at Magpul, the largest manufacturer of ammunition magazines in Colorado, appeared normal Wednesday morning.
But that industrious calm likely will change soon, after Gov. John Hickenlooper signed into law Wednesday a series of gun-control measures -- most notably HB 1224, which limits ammunition magazines to 15 rounds or less.
Magpul, which has its offices and manufacturing facilities in a nondescript building at 400 Young Court in Erie, warned lawmakers last month that it would leave Colorado if the magazine-limits bill became law. It would be hypocritical, the company has said, for it to remain in a state where it could no longer sell high-capacity magazines to gun owners.
Company officials declined repeated requests for comment Wednesday but posted on the Magpul Facebook page that its move out of state will start "almost immediately" after HB 1224 becomes law and that "we will prioritize moving magazine manufacturing operations first."
"We expect the first PMAGs to be made outside (Colorado) within 30 days of the signing, with the rest to follow in phases," the statement reads. "We will likely become a multi-state operation as a result of this move, and not all locations have been selected."
'Social agenda' cited
Magpul blamed a "social agenda from outside the state" for the gun-control bill's passage but said Colorado residents can fight back against the legislation "through recalls, ballot initiatives and the 2014 election." Already, four gun-rights supporters in the state have announced that they will ask voters next year to overturn HB 1224 at the ballot box.
Late last week, the company attempted to convince the governor to veto the bill by hiring Denver law firm Holland & Hart to review the scope of HB 1224 and point out where the legislation overreached. The law firm concluded that the bill effectively: restricts the sale, possession, inheritance and transfer of nearly all firearm magazines, regardless of capacity; will be virtually impossible to implement and enforce; and will constitute one of the "most expansive" gun bills in the country.
Hickenlooper's spokesman, Eric Brown, said restricting the number of rounds in a magazine can help prevent the kinds of mass shootings -- at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn., and the movie theater in Aurora -- that made national headlines last year.
"Large magazines have the potential to turn killers into killing machines," Brown said. "This law won't stop bad people from doing bad things. But it does open the possibility that a person determined to kill people might be slowed down, even for an instant."
Robyn Thomas, executive director of the San Francisco-based Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence, lauded the governor's decision to back the gun-control bills. The legislation also included a bill to require universal background checks for gun sales or transfers and a bill requiring gun customers to pay for the costs of background checks.
"Strong gun laws to keep dangerous weapons out of the wrong hands are consistent with the Second Amendment and are necessary to defending our communities from the constant threat of violence," she said.
'Utah wants you'
Meanwhile, visitors to the company's Facebook page have left messages urging Magpul to locate in their states.
"Come to Little Rock, AR. Super gun friendly here. We would love the industry and are a right to work state!" wrote one visitor.
A Magpul enthusiast from a neighboring state kept the plea simple and straightforward.
"Utah wants you," she wrote.
Magpul employs just over 200 people. But there are at least twice that many who work for companies -- suppliers, subcontractors and service providers -- that do business with Magpul in the state. Lloyd Lawrence, owner of Denver-based Lawrence Tool & Molding, told the Denver Post in February that it would take jobs and machinery out of the state if Magpul relocates.
Tom Clark, CEO of the Metro Denver Economic Development Corp., said political decisions inevitably affect companies doing business in Colorado.
He noted the number of companies that migrated to Colorado from California after burdensome tax legislation was passed in the Golden State.
"Good and ill, politics and business are not an ironic circumstance but often are a cause and effect relationship," Clark said. "It's all about business climate, and that is mostly set by the tax and regulatory environment."
Erie spokesman Fred Diehl said Wednesday that Magpul has not notified the town of any impending departure.
"That being said, the town has followed news reports on this topic," he said. "Simply put, Magpul's consideration of whether or not to move their operations is not reflective of the positive business climate in Erie."
The Denver Post contributed to this report.
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