Magpul pulling out of Colorado = $80M Lost for the State

A decision made by Democratic lawmakers last year regarding gun control is now starting to wreak havoc in the state of Colorado. The state has been in the midst of a weak economy recently and is about to see things get worse, as private sector jobs disappear in the wake of the gun control decision.

This shouldn’t really come as a surprise, though, as gun accessory manufacturer Magpul Industries warned that they would be heading out of town should the new gun control scheme be put in place. That they did, as they are now splitting their operations between Texas and Wyoming. According to the Washington Times, that moves, as well as others yet to come, will cost Colorado 200 jobs and an annual hit of $80 million.

The newspaper reported that Magpul, which was founded back in 1999 by a Colorado native, was on the verge of expanding their business and building a new facility in Broomfield. That did not happen, though, as a hotly contested bill passed the House and Senate despite not picking up a single Republican vote. Conservatives are disappointed to say the least, especially since they see the new law as being something that will essentially be unenforceable by Colorado sheriffs.

While the Democrats may have won this particular battle, they are beginning to take some hits in the overall war. A pair of state senators – Senate President John Morse and Sen. Angela Giron – lost their seats in recall elections, while another, Sen. Evie Hudak, was forced to resign with a recall petition hovering over her head.

Senate Minority Leader Bill Cadman released a statement that confirmed what many feared would happen, which was that Magpul Industries were packing up and moving out, taking 200 jobs with them in the process. In the statement, the Senator indicated that this was an event that need not have happened, but which ended up coming about because of “petty politics.” He also claimed that 200 Coloradans would now be placed in a difficult financial situation because of what he described as “irresponsible legislation from Democrats in Denver.”

A Republican lawmaker also chimed in, saying that it was stunning how quickly things had changed in the space of 12 months. He pointed out how 2013 looked bright, with Magpul looking to expand their operations in the Centennial State. That all changed in light of the passing of a single bill, with Magpul now moving 92% of their operations out of the state where the company was conceived in the first place.

There are now many people in Colorado and beyond ready to lash out at the decision made by Democratic lawmakers, with many saying that this was something that they should have seen coming given the warnings by Magpul Industries.