On July 13, 2006, the US Senate voted 84-16 to approve an amendment to the Homeland Security Appropriations Act 2007 that prohibited the confiscation of legally owned guns during emergencies. Senator David Vitter proposed the amendment in response to Hurricane Katrina. During and after the disaster, due to the fear of violence by looters, local authorities made various confiscation efforts that were later challenged in court. According to Vitter, 10 states—Louisiana, Mississippi, Florida, South Carolina, Virginia, Alaska, Idaho, Kentucky, New Hampshire, and Oklahoma—have similar laws.



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