The new gun law proposed by two Philadelphia-area lawmakers to create a zone around schools, where no one can illegally possess a firearm, will make criminals think twice about packing heat near your little sister's elementary school.

After all, if a two-time convicted, armed felon is going near a school to sell a dime bag, the first thing on his or her mind would be breaking an arbitrary, imaginary boundary that might send them back to prison.

Because selling drugs or having a gun when you are a felon is not already a crime.

If the bill became law, an individual illegally possessing a firearm within 1,000 feet of a school or university, or within 500 feet of a playground or recreational facility, would face mandatory prison time.

Sponsored by State Sens. Shirley Kitchen and Vincent Fumo -- the same lawmaker whose enacted legislation shut down all-ages entertainment in State College last year -- the bill would not apply to legal gun owners and individuals with concealed weapons permits.

The only people who would be breaking the law are individuals who are already breaking the law.

With so many purposeless bills on the floors of legislatures today, this one may just take the cake.

Crime around our schools is a serious concern, so the bill is well intentioned. But redundancy does nothing to solve problems.

According to laws currently on the books, everywhere is a firearm-free zone for those convicted of felonies. They are not allowed to own guns.

So, if an individual is now apprehended illegally in possession of a firearm close to a school, they go to jail.

With this new law, if they are caught with a gun within this new "zone," nothing different happens.

With serious legislation usually coming out of the statehouse at a snail's pace, time should not be wasted on such nonsense.

We need more jobs. We need more money for education. And no one can argue that we definitely need to ensure the safety of our young people.

But what we do not need a new law that says illegal activity is illegal.

Paying mere lip service to a serious concern should not be tolerated.