Rendell was scheduled to hold a news conference Wednesday afternoon with Pittsburgh Mayor Luke Ravenstahl and other municipal officials from around the state.

Rendell said he would ask the Legislature to allow municipalities to enact their own gun laws.

In addition, spokesmen for Ravenstahl and Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter said they expect Rendell to ask Congress to re-enact a ban on assault weapons.

Authorities said Richard Poplawski was armed with an AK-47 assault rifle and other weapons when he allegedly gunned down three Pittsburgh officers earlier this month.

This isn't the first time the governor or lawmakers have tried to push for stricter laws, but they're now hoping public opinion in western Pennsylvania will be in their favor.

Rendell said, "Our police all over the state are simply outgunned."

One of the proposals he'll announce is the restoration of an option that allows Pennsylvania municipalities to enact their own gun laws.

Rendell also criticized lawmakers for attending officer's funerals, but not addressing the problem.

"When they advise us there's no place for semiautomatic assault weapons and clips that hold more than 10 round of ammo, let's listen to them," he said. "That's the way to honor them, not by going to their funerals."

Gun control advocates have had little success in changing state laws, citing opposition by conservative Democratics in western Pennsylvania.

"Gun control doesn't work. They know this," said NRA member and chairman of Firearms Owners Against Crime Kim Stolfer. "And I have a question for the governor. If the governor is saying we need more laws, then isn't he saying all the laws in the book I just gave you have failed? Which one is he going to repeal?"

Stolfer believes attempts to ban assault weapons, like the AK-47 allegedly used by Poplawski against police in the shootings, could put more police lives at risk because hunting rifle bullets are larger and more powerful.