In an unusual move for Gov. Tom Wolf, he devoted part of his annual state budget address to appealing for something that a majority of Pennsylvanians favor — laws that regulate gun ownership.

Unfortunately, the Legislature has shown reluctance to take action on gun control measures, typically letting proposals die in committee. If the governor is serious about getting such bills passed, it’s time he forced the issue by calling a special session of the Legislature to deal with gun laws.

Mr. Wolf implored the Legislature to make this “the year we choose to stop being cynical about the politics of gun violence.” He listed commonsense proposals that should be considered: universal background checks on gun sales, mandatory reporting of lost or stolen guns, red flag laws that remove guns from those at risk of harming someone and better counseling services for troubled schoolchildren.

The governor is not alone in his call to take action on gun violence. A Franklin and Marshall College poll from August 2019 found that 64% of Pennsylvania residents favored more laws that regulate gun ownership. The school reported that 47% of those polled were strongly in favor of more laws, and 17% somewhat favored them. And 34% of the respondents said they were gun owners.

A Franklin and Marshall poll in 2018 showed that 86% of Pennsylvanians favored background checks.

Support for stronger gun laws has been building over the past few years as more incidents of mass killings dominate the headlines. In 2013, the same question from Franklin and Marshall pollsters resulted in only 51% of state residents favoring stronger gun ownership.

A Pew Center Research survey in September 2019 found that 60% of Americans favored tougher gun laws and 91% supported stronger background checks.

Despite the public support of tougher regulations, the Republican-controlled Legislature has shown little interest in moving legislation. In response to Mr. Wolf’s appeal for action, a spokesman for the House Republican caucus said the members planned to focus on tougher criminal penalties for those convicted of gun crimes.

It’s the difference between the proactive approach sought by the governor and the reactive approach suggested by the Republican majority. Holding people accountable after the fact does little to stem the violence beforehand.

Mr. Wolf is not naive about the effectiveness of any legislation, noting that “there’s no law that can eliminate every act of gun violence,” but his proposals deserve to be discussed, debated and voted on by the Legislature. Instead of talking about gun violence, the governor and lawmakers should meet to actually address the problem and take into account the opinions of the majority of residents.

First Published: March 12, 2020, 10:00 a.m.