Group Blasts Orlando's Use of Tax Dollars to Muzzle Gun Rights

Florida Carry, a Second Amendment group, is charging that Orlando is quietly using public money to fund anti-gun programs.

"Funded primarily by grants from the United Against Illegal Guns Support Fund, some local governments have taken the bait and hired anti-gun activists allegedly to assist them with gun violence associated with 'illegal guns,'" said Sean Caranna of Florida Carry.

But Caranna said that in Orlando, along with several other U.S. cities, the grant-funded positions come with "a generous city benefits package and operational expense requirements paid for by the taxpayer."

Longtime gun-control activist and Tallahassee lobbyist Linda S. Vaughn currently fills the Orlando position, called MAIG (Mayors Against Illegal Guns) regional coordinator. The job's salary is listed at $60,000 per year, but fiscal impact documents show a $24,000 shortfall for that position. That difference is covered by the general fund.

Vaughn's annual contract with Orlando was most recently renewed in February. Her duties include working to pass laws requiring background checks for all sales at gun shows, and allowing broader local government control of gun laws.

"Florida Carry believes that it is ethically improper, and perhaps even unlawful, for the city of Orlando to fund a position whose sole purpose is to undermine Second Amendment rights, at taxpayer expense, on behalf of a private organization," Caranna said in a statement.