On Friday, Virginia’s Democratic-led House Committee voted to pass new advancements of a gun legislation that has been previously blocked by the House Republican majority. This comes less than a week after tens of thousand pro-gun advocates from around the state rallied around the state Capital, with many claiming that there is a, “there is an all out war on our constitution.”

“Our action today is for the families who have lost loved ones as a result of gun violence,” said House Speaker Eileen Filler-Corn. 

The House committee passed seven of the eight gun bills that Virginia Governor, Ralph Northam, pushed as a top priority. These newly passed bills contain multiple restrictions on things like gun purchases and opportunity. 

With this bill in place, handgun purchases will be limited to once a month, all gun purchases require background checks and localities now have the opportunity to ban guns in public buildings. Alongside the many other laws, a red flag bill that allows authorities to temporarily take guns away from anyone that is deemed a danger to themselves or others was also a part of the legislation.

The new bills will be moving to a full house vote sometime next week prior to going to the senate, who have already passed other bills related to gun-control. Within the advancing bills, bans and restrictions on assault weapons have not yet been included. Although Governor Northam says he has no interest in doing so, gun-rights advocates claim that he intends to confiscate such rifles.