I will always oppose mandatory storage laws with every fiber of my being. It’s not because I object to firearm storage, though. It’s because I don’t want any government telling people when and how they have to secure their firearms. They don’t know your individual situation and so their mandates are likely to make things unnecessarily difficult for someone.

But people can and should secure guns when not in use.

This week is the NSSF’s Gun Storage Check Week, where you should check to make sure you have.

NSSF^®, The Firearm Industry Trade Association, is reminding gun owners and their families to check on their firearm storage practices during Gun Storage Check Week^®,  the national firearm safety awareness week that runs Sunday, June 1, through Saturday, June 7. During that week and beyond, the message of “Make Sure It’s Secure™” is highlighted to help prevent unwanted access to firearms.

“Securely storing guns when they’re not in use saves lives—it’s really that simple,” said Joe Bartozzi, President and CEO of NSSF. “No one wants their gun in the hands of an unsupervised child, a person in crisis, someone who does not understand how to safely operate firearms or a thief. If something bad happens because your gun isn’t stored securely, you’ll regret it, probably forever.”

To emphasize the importance of securely storing guns when not in use, visitors to gunstoragecheck.org will have the opportunity to enter the Gun Storage Check Week Sweepstakes beginning May 30 to win gun safes and other prizes each week in June. Those who enter can improve their chances of winning by gaining bonus entries for watching a firearm safety video.

The goal of Gun Storage Check Week, which is observed during National Safety Month, is to help prevent firearm accidents, especially those involving children, suicides and thefts. “Hiding a gun on top of a refrigerator, a closet shelf or under a car seat is no substitute for secure, locked storage,” Bartozzi said. “Take a moment to check how you’re keeping your guns safe from unwanted to access. If you need to make improvements, we have suggestions for storage devices that will fit your lifestyle.”

Bartozzi said storage devices are available to meet the needs of all gun owners—from those who value readiness for personal and home protection to hunters and recreational shooters who own many firearms that need to be responsibly stored when not in use. The GunStorageCheck.org website provides resources to help gun owners decide which locked storage device can best meet their safety and accessibility needs.

Storage options could be a gun or trigger lock, a gun safe, a locking gun case, or a lock box for your home or vehicle. Either way, these keep the guns out of unauthorized hands while inside the home or vehicle–and yes, your guns need to be secured in your car.

I will say that storage solutions that don’t stop the gun from being physically picked up won’t do anything to prevent theft, but they will protect it from being misused by younger hands inside the home. That includes accidents and suicides.

The truth of the matter is that this is on us. If we don’t secure our guns, someone will decide to tell us when and how to secure them, and I promise you that you won’t like what they lay down.

What’s more, even if no one ever does try to mandate storage in your state, I can’t imagine there’s anything worse than finding out your child or some other loved one accessed your gun and took their own life, either intentionally or not. Don’t risk it, folks. Just do what you know you need to do.

Your family doesn’t need that kind of trauma, and you don’t need to have to live with that kind of guilt, which I promise you will feel even if you figure it really wasn’t your fault. It won’t matter.l

Don’t risk it.