The Union Bulletin reports

Thousands of people are expected to peruse hundreds of tables of guns, ammunition, cartridges, magazines and knives at two gun shows in Pierce County this weekend.

Many people will buy from firearms dealers, who have booked most of the shows’ booths. Such sellers are required by federal law to conduct background checks that delve into a potential buyer’s history of mental illness, drug use and criminal convictions, among other aspects.

But some purchases will be made from another kind of seller: private individuals selling guns from their personal collections.

Both shows operate under the so-called gun show loophole, which excuses private sellers at such events from having to research the backgrounds of their buyers.

The one at the Washington State Fairgrounds in Puyallup still requires a background check in those cases, although it is a more rudimentary review than dealers conduct. The other show, 9 miles away at the Tacoma Dome, does not require any check.

That worries some city of Tacoma elected officials who favor universal background checks as a way to lower crime rates and keep guns out of the hands of those who should not possess them.

[…]

City officials might not have to act. This fall, state voters will decide two gun-related ballot measures. Initiative 594 would require background checks for all private gun sales, while Initiative 591 would forbid background checks more stringent than federal law requires.

If I-594 passes, the organizers of both of this weekend’s guns shows would have to change how they operate.

Read the whole article here.