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HARRISBURG — The computer work that will shut down the state’s firearms purchases for three or four days might be pushed back to late December or January, state police Commissioner Jeffrey Miller said Monday.
It’s also possible that the gun-sales hiatus will be delayed just a few weeks as a way to quiet critics of the move, or it might go forward as currently scheduled Sept. 2 to 6, Miller said at a Pennsylvania Press Club luncheon.
He said state police are consulting with other agencies that use the same criminal history database – including schools and the court system – to see if those alternate dates are acceptable. Any delay will result in higher costs charged by the vendor doing the work.
Miller said he expects to present the options Tuesday to Gov. Ed Rendell, who will decide whether to postpone the computer upgrade. About 47 million records need to be moved from the current system, which dates to 1981.
Criticizers of the plan note it would occur during the first few days of dove and Canada geese hunting season.
Miller defended the upgrade as necessary and worth some inconvenience.
“I look at it like there’s never a good time to install new countertops in your kitchen,” he said.
On Friday, more than two dozen gun dealers and a state lawmaker asked Commonwealth Court to block the freeze, arguing the work can be done without stopping sales. Miller disputes that claim.
Plaintiff George Romanoff, whose Ace Sporting Goods in Washington would normally sell 3,000-4,000 guns during the four-day shutdown period, said the computer work should not require the system to be off line for so long.
“We just find it very unfair that dealers should be deprived of their right to do legal commerce,” he said.