DOVER, Del. (AP) - Legislative budget writers have appropriated $200,000 for a gun buyback program that would be administered by Delaware State Police.
Members of the Joint Finance Committee voted 7-to-5 Tuesday to appropriate the money, the same amount appropriated, but never spent, last year.
It's unclear whether this year's appropriation will ever be spent, but some lawmakers say budget language should be added to prohibit police from reselling any guns acquired in a new buyback program and require instead that they be destroyed.
Last year, the state Senate refused to reauthorize a pilot gun buyback program that resulted in more than 2,000 weapons being exchanged for prepaid debit cards worth $100 to $200.
Critics including, Republican state Sen. David Lawson of Marydel, have questioned the effectiveness of gun buybacks in reducing crime.
