Legalizing All Consumer Fireworks in Minnesota

Hope it goes thru. The 4th of July is my Christmas, I wait patiently all year to enjoy that outdoor barbecue, fun in the sun, then the big booms and bright colors at night after all that.

But wait A minute!

Isn't it the government's job to keep us safe from all possible hazards?

(According to some elements it is.) LIBERALS UNITE!

Quick, get Michael Moore on this NOW!

In Oregon safe, sane and boring are allow, but it's only a short drive over the border to WA. Now in WA. you can get just about anything from a tent type store except bottle rockets and firecrackers. For those 2 items you need to drive a bit more to go to an Indian reservation. Wa. gets the sales tax and it boosts the local economy and all Oregon gets is world war 3 a couple of days a year. I think over the last 5 years I have only heard of 3 or 4 fireworks related incidents.

Joe:

It all depends on what you call an "incident". Serveral years ago fireworks set off a fire on property ajoining our mountain cabin property. The local fire department extinguished the fire.

Would you consider this an "incident"? (I seriously doubt that it was reported in the local newspaper because there isn't one)

I do believe there should be restrictions as to where you can use them.

jsesere wrote:I do believe there should be restrictions as to where you can use them.

Yeah like in no public parks, streets etc.

Does the UK have consumer fireworks?

jsesere wrote:Does the UK have consumer fireworks?

oh yes

Well, this bill is mostly being supported by conservatives as because of the tax dollars that could be made if passed but I'm supporting it because I like my fireworks! I do believe that firework use should be prohibited in the streets, parks and public property. I know some cities around here do not allow the use of fireworks already but Minneapolis, St.Paul and Roseville all allow it. For the past couple of years, Roseville wasn't allowing vendors to set up tents in Roseville but fireworks were still being sold in gas stations and stores. I'm sure some of you think I'm a republican as I seem to hate CFLs, listen to Joe Soucheray on Garage Logic (Joe is a republican and often speaks his views) and I also brought this up and is supporting it. I really don't support either party, republicans or democrats. I support what I want to support and vote for who I want to vote for.

We have great fireworks in South Carolina. Mortars are my favorites, two booms for the bucks. There are some local ordinances that prohibit fireworks, some beaches for instance. All of ours run North-South. One night Holley and I were shooting rockets and one errantly flew into the sea oats ant lit them. There was a 20 mph North wind, and we were at the North end of the island. The sea oats are what trap sand and create dunes, which are in a precarious state in many places due to erosion. We ran up there and started frantically moving sand to smother it and it kept spreading. We were scared [bleep]. It finally reached a walkway though the dunes and ran out of fuel. I can't imagine how bad it could have been if it had gotten large enough for sparks and embers to start crossing the gaps between walkways and just destroyed the whole island's sea oats. That might be why there's an ordinance against them. Besides the litter. I have no Idea how much I would have been fined.

But I still love playing with them. Other than lighting the dunes, I've never had an incident. Unless you count the time a bottle rocket fell over before launch and the shower of exhaust was aimed right into the paper bag of fireworks, laying on its side wide open. Everything in it lit each other and we had quite an exciting and unexpected grand finale, looking over our shoulders as we ran.

I do try to find all of the litter though. January second we started picking up spent rockets in our yard and were still finding them a week later. We live in a suburban neighborhood. I just watch other people's now. It would cut into my hobby funds too much. And I only have to pick up their litter.

Lucky there Rusty!
Look what could have happened.
Looking back at how much of my life I have lived I may surprise not more went wrong.

So far it sounds like more people in the house want the bill to pass than the ones who don't. I have listened to a few hours of debate in the MN house the past few days and it sounds like the bill is doing well. It got VERY close to passing the house last week but in the final minutes, the bill was re-referred to the committee and will be reheard on the 16th. I don't want to get my hopes too high as most things the people want get shot down, even if the bill makes it to the final step before becoming a law.

There is still hope for you yet, don't give up the hope. Apparently a few un-American people in the house it sounds like. It was on it's way and it got re-referred,,someone qualifying there paycheck there and wasting more public money on debate.

Either way, I'll be setting off my firecrackers and bottle rockets anyway. I would just feel better knowing I'm not breaking the law and being able to buy them in the state.

Now there is a pyro club that is fighting the bill. They are shooting it down because they dont think the average person should be able to use the more dangerous fireworks. They say that they own an Old air field that they shoot all their fireworks off at. they obtain a permit from the state that allows them to use class b pro fireworks and all class c fireworks. People have to pay $200 each per season to be in the club and each has to pass a club safety class before being able to fire any fireworks off.

So how it sounds to me is they are fighting it because of money, if you can use these fireworks just anywhere, people wont be paying to be in a club that lets you use them (unless you want to do class b stuff).

i typed this on my phone so sorry for misspellings...

All about the dollar it seems.

That club dies for the most part if the bill passes, and the state doesn't get there permit fee. Someone made a behind the boards hand shake and re-referred the bill I bet.

You city dwellers see it much differently from those who live "out in the sticks' where wildfires and destruction of property, private and public, are alawys a concern.

How 'bout if we confine fireworks to the city limits where there are fire departments, hospitals and medical aid clinics?

SuperDave wrote:You city dwellers see it much differently from those who live "out in the sticks' where wildfires and destruction of property, private and public, are alawys a concern.

How 'bout if we confine fireworks to the city limits where there are fire departments, hospitals and medical aid clinics?

Wildfires is a big one but actually, the rural representatives and senators are voting green on this bill and the city representative and senators are voting red. For firework use in the city, the neg arguments are that the houses are close together on small lots and aerial fireworks would not mix so well what that. Another neg city argument is that firecrackers could screw with the "shot-spotters" (a thing that detects gun shots and sends a report to police, they are scattered around the tough parts of Minneapolis) and also people may not know if there is actually a shoot out or firecrackers going off, it could also start a shoot out... That is what some of the city reps who are voting red said in their debate.

HOT DAMN! The senate has passed SF1694 (another fireworks bill!)

Meaning?

Meaning Minnesota can now pump it's "Ten Thousand Lakes" dry fighting wildfires fires next summer.

Here gangs use fireworks well not personally them but they use the cover of fireworks going off for shooting.
You hear about it quite a lot, shootings on bonfire night.
A few years ago they shot a guy on my road on bonfire night.

Well, everyone already uses the "illegal" fireworks anyway. People up and down the block are doing them and just about anywhere in the city on the 4th you can see and hear them going off. This bill passing the senate makes the legalization of all class c fireworks one step closer. Since SF1694 closely resembles HF1774, HF1774 will likely be substituted for SF1694 as SF1694 goes into the house. If HF1774 passes the house, it will just need to be passed by governor Dayton. Once passes, the law will take effect on June 1st.