SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) - A Republican-led attempt to hold a statewide referendum by signature petition on a newly signed gun control law has been turned away by the New Mexico Secretary of State’s Office.
Secretary of State Maggie Toulouse Oliver on Thursday said the proposed petition did not satisfy legal requirements.
In a letter to Republican House minority leader James Townsend of Artesia, she says the new state law to expand background checks to nearly all private gun sales is a matter of public safety and cannot be overturned by referendum under state law.
The law to expand background checks against a federal database of prohibited buyers has generated a backlash from county sheriffs and others who say it will be difficult to enforce and do little to address gun violence.
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