PRO-gun bills

THREE NEW PRO-GUN BILLS

HB 354 (sponsored by Rep. Mark Walker, R-45) partially fixes a major
gun ban in the existing state code. Under existing law, it is a
felony to carry a concealed firearm into a bus terminal under any
circumstances. HB 354 would exempt police officers, concealed-weapon
permit holders, and certain others, enabling them to legally carry in
a bus terminal. Unfortunately, the bill doesn’t go far enough. For
one thing, it would still be a felony for a private citizen to carry
a concealed firearm without a permit in a bus terminal, whereas the
same act is a misdemeanor in most other locations. And, for that
matter, we’d like to see the laws get changed to make it legal to
carry in public places without a permit. But HB 354 is a good start
and is an important step in the right direction. It deserves our
strong support.

HB 355 (Rep. Mark Walker, R-45) modifies the existing Innkeeper’s
Rights Act, which specifies the conditions under which the manager of
a hotel, motel, or inn may prohibit someone from staying there or may
kick someone out without risk of being held liable for
“discrimination”. Examples include, among other things, the
possession and use of illegal drugs, inability to pay for the room,
intoxication, creating a public nuisance, and having a firearm in
one’s room. HB 355 would change this last item to “illegal
possession or use of firearms.”

Both of these bills are currently in the House Rules Committee. It
is important that they not be allowed to languish and die there, and
that they be sent to a friendly committee soon.

We recommend that you contact the Chairman of the House Rules
Committee, Rep. Stephen Urquhart, and politely tell him that HB 354
and HB 355 need to quickly be sent to a committee that will give them
a fair hearing.

Rep. Stephen H. Urquhart, Chairman, House Rules Committee
e-mail: [email protected]
Fax: (801)326-1544
House of Representatives switchboard: (801)538-1029
Toll-free: (800)908-4261

Another good bill, HB 39 (Rep. Curt Oda, R-14) mandates that the fees
collected by the state for concealed-carry permit applications and
renewals be used exclusively to fund the processing of such
applications and renewals, instead of being sent to the General Fund
as is currently the case, where this money can be used for anything.
This will ensure that these fees don’t get regarded and used as just
another source of general tax revenue, and it could help speed up the
processing of permit applications. HB 39 already passed the House by
a wide margin and is now in the Senate, where its prospects look
good. We’ll keep you posted on its progress.

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