The head of the Hawaii Rifle Association says a proposal by lawmakers to buy back guns is a waste of money.
Associated Press reports a state senate committee is considering spending 100,000 US dollars in a gun buy back programme to get unwanted firearms off the streets in an effort to reduce gun violence.
The Senate public safety committee will defer making a decision for a week to give the attorney general time to propose amendments.
Supporters of the buy-back plan estimate guns were used in one in five murders in Hawaii in 2011 and it is thought there are about a million guns in the State.
The Rifle Association President Harvey Gerwig says the plan could lead to unnecessary destruction of historic guns.
He says it would be better for the legislature to support improving mental health measures.
