Legislative Action
Member Updates
Member Update – 5 January 2026
Dear Members
This is a stressful time for everyone, and we understand (and share) your anxiety and frustration.
SSAA National and SSAA NSW worked quickly and tirelessly to engage with the NSW Government on the Terrorism and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2025 that passed through the NSW Parliament earlier this week, here: Terrorism and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2025. The NSW Government was not prepared to consult with key stakeholders on the legislation, acting quickly to push the Bill through parliament.
Across the border, the ACT Government has announced it will take a more measured and consultative approach, while at the same time seeking to align (where practicable and appropriate) the ACT Firearms Act 1996 with the impending amendments to its NSW equivalent.
Member Update – 20 December 2025
Dear SSAA ACT Inc. member,
Most of you will have heard by now about recent proposed changes to firearms legislation in NSW and the potential flow-on implications for the ACT. This is a rapidly evolving situation and our SSAA ACT Inc volunteers are working hard to keep on top of developments as they occur, to support our members and to coordinate with SSAA National, with other SSAA State and Territory organisations, and with other relevant associations.
We understand and appreciate how these developments are concerning to our licensed firearms owners, competition shooters and hunters alike.
Key Issues at a Glance
A concise brief for SSAA ACT Inc. Members
NSW e-Petitions
Legislative Assembly
Proportionate, Evidence-based and Consultative firearms policy
To the Speaker and Members of the Legislative Assembly, the petitioners state that:
Licensed firearms owners in New South Wales are subject to rigorous background checks, ongoing compliance requirements, and strict regulatory oversight. Following acts of violence in Bondi which involved firearms, statements made in public discourse have, at times, created an implication that licensed firearms ownership or firearms legislation is connected to terrorism or extremist terrorist activity.
Such implications risk misleading the public, undermining evidence-based policy debate, and unfairly associating law-abiding citizens with criminal, extremist or terrorist conduct they do not engage in and actively reject.
Law abiding firearms owners support stronger oversight of terrorist and criminal activities and we support stronger penalties for terrorist and criminal acts.
The petitioners therefore request that the Legislative Assembly:
1. Refrain from classifying, describing, or regulating licensed, law-abiding firearms owners in a manner that associates them with terrorism or extremist activity; and
2. Ensure that firearms policy and legislation is proportionate, evidence-based, and clearly distinguishes licensed firearms owners from criminal or terrorist actors.
Legislative Council
Proportionate, Evidence-based and Consultative firearms policy
To the President and Members of the Legislative Council:
the petitioners of NSW and Australia state that rushing gun reform without taking an evidence based approach will hurt all Australians, through second and third order effects.
The petitioners request that the House delay the rushed gun reforms proposed by Premier Minns, allowing time to assess their impact on Australians and to develop effective laws that genuinely reduce the risk of a terrorist attack like the one seen in Bondi.
For the information of Members. There is a Change.org petition to thoroughly investigate the circumstances leading to the Bondi terrorist attack—particularly the failures in intelligence, policing, and legislative policies that enabled such an attack to occur. We need transparency and accountability to restore public confidence and ensure such a calamity is never repeated.
Interested Members can read and sign the petition here: Petition · Call for a Commonwealth Royal Commission into the Bondi Beach terror attack – Australia · Change.org
Documents for download
| Document Name | Download Here |
|---|---|
| Member Information Pack - December 2025 Provides members with factual information about the ACT and the impact to potential law changes. | Member Information Pack |