State Preemption of Local Legislation Is Getting Worse

The AR-15-style gun that Connor Betts used to kill nine people and injure 27 more on August 4 would have been illegal in Dayton before 2006. But that year, Ohio passed HB 347, which wiped out assault weapon bans and other gun control ordinances in roughly 80 cities throughout the state, including Dayton. That bill forbade cities from passing tougher gun regulations than what already exists in state laws. Ohio is one of 43 states that have laws that preempt or preclude cities and municipal governments from creating their own gun control ordinances—this despite the fact that cities bear the brunt of gun violence in most states.

State preemption laws cover far more ground than just gun activity, though. They are responsible for handcuffing cities from managing issues across the board: taxation, zoning, local land use, business practices, climate-change adaptation, and even what kind of monuments can and can’t be displayed. Cities should be concerned now that the power-grip of state preemption laws has been growing tighter over the last decade, according to a new report, “The Growing Shadow of State Interference,” produced by the Local Solutions Support Center and the State Innovation Exchange.