ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10) – The rise in gun violence is an issue that’s been seen in cities across New York and the country. And, state lawmakers in Albany are weighing different solutions to tackle the problem.

Assemblymembers took testimony at a public hearing today. 

“New York has made significant progress and is a model state for the rest of the country on gun violence prevention, but with daily shootings surging and death tolls rising all over the state we are facing a serious public health emergency,” said Rebecca Fischer with New Yorkers Against Gun Violence. Fischer says the issue has been made worse by the COVID-19 pandemic.

She says no one law or policy will totally end the crisis. But, she says one solution could be microstamping technology legislation. “This allows police to trace cartridge cases found at crime scenes back to the firearms, back to the dealers and back to the manufacturers,” Fischer said.

Meanwhile police commissioners including NYPD Commissioner Dermot Shea, say changes to the state’s bail reform, and “Raise the Age” laws are needed. “The Legislature must amend the law so that judges have complete and accurate information when making decisions and more discretion when doing so,” Shea said.

Another issue that was brought up is that a state ammunition sales database that was approved under the SAFE Act has never been operational.