New Washington state bill would track and merge gun violence data

Washington state Democrats are pushing to create a new office that would research Washington gun violence and create a more sophisticated tracking system.

Supporters say Senate Bill 6288 would help communities collect and share data throughout the state, and fund local initiatives to reduce gun violence. It passed committee vote in January, and is now in the Senate Ways & Means Committee, reports The Seattle Times.

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Part of the impetus behind the bill is to help communities develop ways to deal with their area’s individual patterns of gun violence, and while gun violence data is already tracked in the state to an extent, this bill would facilitate the merging of data.

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Some Republicans say the bill is just another way to impose gun control, with Sen. Mike Padden, R-Spokane Valley expressing concern that the state office might simply become a gun restrictions advocacy group.

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