LOS ANGELES (CNS) - Los Angeles City Councilman Mitch O'Farrell said today that his office is seeking what legal action it can take to defend a law he championed that requires contractors to disclose ties they have with the National Rifle Association.
A federal judge issued a preliminary injunction to block Los Angeles from enforcing the law on Wednesday, according to the Los Angeles Times.
“Our initiative provides transparency and allows the taxpayer to know how and where their monies are being spent,” O'Farrell said. “My office is consulting with the City Attorney on next steps.”
The ruling marks an initial victory for the gun rights group, which sued the city earlier this year over the law.
The City Council in February moved to require prospective contractors to disclose under affidavit any contracts or sponsorships they or their subsidiaries have with the NRA.
The city has similar policies about companies involved in the construction of President Trump's proposed border wall and over the historic investment in or profits from slavery, the Times reported.
The City Council is currently discussing a potential law that would prohibit city purchases from companies that have been determined to be contributing to the destruction of the Amazon Rainforest.
At the time of the law's discussion, O'Farrell cited mass shootings seen across the country and told reporters earlier this year that the NRA has “been a road block to gun safety reform at every level of government now for several decades,” according to the Times.
“The NRA's influence has led to a proliferation of firearms, including weapons used in combat across the country, and it has emboldened their `guns of every type, everywhere, for everyone' agenda,” O'Farrell said during a news conference before the vote in February. “Bottom line, the NRA's outsized influence is making the United States a more dangerous and more costly place to live.”
A federal judge denied a request by the city of Los Angeles in August to dismiss a NRA lawsuit challenging the city's law.
The NRA claimed in the lawsuit that by enacting the ordinance, “the city hopes to pressure NRA supporters and members to end their relationships with NRA, reducing NRA's funding and support. Indeed, the city's goal is to diminish NRA's political contributions, its membership numbers and ultimately its pro-Second Amendment speech.”
U.S. District Judge Stephen Wilson wrote in his ruling Wednesday that “even though the ordinance only forces disclosure of activity that may not be expressive, the clear purpose of the disclosure is to undermine the NRA's explicitly political speech,” the Times reported.
The disclosure law contains more than a dozen exemptions, including contracts involving the city's pension funds and other investment agreements.
Some city neighborhood groups opposed the city's passage of the law. The Studio City Neighborhood Council said in a statement submitted to the council that while “stakeholders are concerned about gun violence,” singling out an organization “smacks of politics, makes little sense and could result in unwanted legal costs,” the newspaper reported.
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