States mostly defer to union guidance for on-set gun safety

By GEOFF MULVIHILL, SUSAN MONTOYA BRYAN and JONATHAN LANDRUM Jr.
Associated Press

The film industry and its unions provide guidelines on how to deal safely with prop guns on movie sets. But in some states where movie-making is big business, lawmakers and regulators rely on those suggested practices rather than regulate on-set firearm use. The lack of strict gun safety rules is under scrutiny after a cinematographer was killed by a prop gun on the New Mexico film set of “Rust.” Court documents state an assistant director handed actor Alec Baldwin a loaded weapon and told him it was safe to use. In New Mexico, as in other states, most of the legislative debate over the entertainment industry has focused on tax credits and incentives to lure it.