American Knife & Tool Institute Applauds Governor Snyder’s Signature of Michigan Switchblade Repeal
Cody, WY (July 25, 2017) – The American Knife & Tool Institute (AKTI) today applauded Governor Rick Snyder, R-MI, for signing Senate Bill 245, a bill to ensure better laws and protections for law abiding citizens carrying an automatic knife. SB 245, which will also create a more consistently enforceable law for police and prosecutors in the state. The law takes effect on October 10, 2018.
“We are extremely pleased to see SB 245 signed into law,” said AKTI’s Executive Director, Jan Billeb. “AKTI believes that Michigan’s outdated laws have needed reform for quite some time, and we were thrilled to support the Michigan State Police in their efforts to pursue a reform that benefits both the State and its citizens. SB 245 is a common sense law that will ensure the rights of law-abiding tradesmen, hunters, veterans, and all citizens are better protected. We thank the State Police for leading the initiative, and Senate Rick Jones for introducing the legislation.”
According to the House Fiscal Agency, SB 245 “…could result in a decrease in costs for local units of government related to county jails and/or local misdemeanor probation supervision.” Additionally, the Senate’s fiscal evaluation states, “[SB 245] could have a positive fiscal impact on local government to the extent that violations of Section 226a are currently prosecuted. Any reduction in misdemeanor arrests and convictions could reduce resource demands on law enforcement, court systems, community supervision, and jails.”
“With Michigan joining other states that allow lawful possession and carrying of automatic knives, there are now 37 states where individuals can use these valuable knives at work or in recreational activities,” said CJ Buck, AKTI President. “In addition to this work in Michigan, AKTI successfully removed all automatic knife restrictions in Colorado earlier in the year, and that bill goes into effect August 9, 2018. This momentum is evidence that Americans continue to
realize that automatic knives are tools that can be easily deployed with one hand, providing a real utility for law abiding citizens,” he added. “And AKTI is proud to lead the path in these common sense reforms.”
AKTI is a non-profit 501(c)6 organization that represents all segments of the knife industry and knife users, promoting reasonable and responsible knife legislation and enforcement. We believe that law-abiding citizens should be able to carry their essential and valuable tools without the fear of arbitrary, inconsistent and ineffective government restrictions. The organization provides valuable and reliable knife law information at www.stateknifelaws.com.
More About AKTI
The American Knife & Tool Institute (AKTI) is a non-profit organization (501(c)6) representing all segments of the knife industry and all knife users. Formed in true grassroots fashion by concerned industry leaders after considerable discussion with individual knifemakers, knife magazine publishers, and a broad section of the knife community, AKTI has been the reasonable and responsible voice of the knife community since 1998. AKTI’s mission is to ensure that Americans will always be able to make, buy, sell, own, carry and use knives and edged tools. To learn more, please visit www.akti.org.
