Sebastian over on Shall Not Be Questioned (formerly Snowflakes in Hell) has a post on some new polling that shows strong support for Second Amendment rights and gun ownership among Americans.
Friday, January 27, 2012
New Polling Shows Strong Support For Second Amendment Rights
Thursday, January 26, 2012
Pro-Gun Bills Sent Back to Senate Courts
As the State Senate began today's session, Senate Majority Leader and Senate Courts of Justice Committee Chairman Tommy Norment had SB4 (Castle Doctrine), SB323 (repeal of handgun rationing), and SB67 (removal of the option for localities to fingerprint CHP applicants) recommitted to the committee. After discussions with Senator Norment, he said it was a procedual move due to proxy votes being cast for members who were not on the Capitol grounds at the time the votes were cast. The state senate allows members to vote in committee by proxy because they may have meetings that overlap, but you must be on Capitol grounds for the votes to be allowed. Apparently, two members who had proxy votes cast were not at the Capitol. The bills will have new votes but there will be no rehearing (meaning the public will not get a second shot at speaking for or against the bills), likely on Monday.
Sunday Hunting Bill Passes
Busy Day in Senate Courts Wednesday, Militia and Police Subcommittee Up Next
Anti-Gun Legislation:
House Bill 364 would prohibit the private sales of firearms at gun shows by requiring that all sales conducted at a gun show go through a federally licensed dealer. We have already seen in the State Senate that the real target of such legislation is to ban all private sales.
House Bill 458 seeks to weaken Virginia's preemption law by allowing localities to adopt an ordinance that prohibits firearms, ammunition, or components, or a combination thereof, in libraries owned or operated by the locality.
Pro-Gun Legislation:
House Bill 20 would update Virginia's Emergency Powers doctrine by adding lawful carrying and transportation to the list of actions that cannot be prohibited during a declaration of emergency.
House Bill 22 would establish that no locality or entity may participate in compensated consfiscation schemes (gun "buyback") where individuals are given anything of value or money in exchange for surrendering a firearm to the locality unless the governing body first passes an ordinance authorizing the gun "buyback." This legislation also requires that any locality holding gun "buybacks" sell the firearms to a federally licensed dealer "or be disposed of in any appropriate manner" if they could not be sold.
House Bill 26 would allow a court to waive a $25 dollar fine upon presentation of the permit to the court, if a person fails to display his concealed handgun permit when requested by a law enforcement officer.
House Bill 375 would prohibit localities from adopting any workplace rule that prevents an employee from storing a lawfully possessed firearm and ammunition in his locked motor vehicle. The firearm must be in a secured container or compartment in the vehicle.
House Bill 940 repeals Virginia's handgun rationing which prohibits the purchase of more than one handgun in a thirty-day period.
Sunday Hunting Set for Final Senate Vote Today
Tuesday, January 24, 2012
Senate Courts Agenda Full of Firearm Related Bills Wednesday
Among the pro-rights bills on the agenda is SB 323, Senator Carrico's bill to repeal handgun rationing ("one gun-a-month"), two bills to repeal the option for localities to require fingerprinting for concealed handgun permit applications (SB 67 and SB 670), and two bills to enact Castle Doctrine (SB 4, SB 64).
Also on the agenda is anti-rights Senator Don McEachin's bill to prohibit the private sale of firearms (SB 379). If McEachin's bill passes, it would make the private sale of firearms a Class 2 misdemeanor. Senator McEachin also has SB 648, a bill that would make it a misdemeanor for a person who is under the influence of alcohol or illegal drugs to carry a loaded firearm in public. Both bills are a solution in search of a problem and should be defeated.
Please contact members of the Senate Courts of Justice Committee and urge them to support the pro-Second Amendment bills and oppose the anti-rights bills.
Sunday Hunting Set for Senate Vote Wednesday
At a time when the number of hunting licenses purchased in Virginia are 1/2 what they were 20 years ago, and many Virginians are not able to get into the woods on Saturdays due to work or family obligations, Sunday is the only day available for some hunters. Additionally, allowing hunting on Sunday will be a boast for the Commonwealth's economy. NRA-ILA notes that comprehensive research from the National Shooting Sports Foundation shows that allowing hunting on Sundays would generate a total annual economic impact estimated at $296 million and create 3,927 jobs. All of this would be spurred by simply eliminating words from state statute books (the current prohibition), not spending taxpayer dollars on some pie-in-the-sky scheme.
Please contact your state Senator today, and respectfully urge him or her to support this critical pro-hunting legislation and extend Virginians the same privileges and opportunities that hunters in the vast majority of states already enjoy. To locate your state Senator and their contact information, please click here.
Monday, January 23, 2012
Sunday Hunting Bill on First Reading in Senate.
To hunt or kill any wild bird or wild animal, including any nuisance species, with a gun, firearm or other weapon on SundayThe bill is on first reading in the Senate today., which is hereby declared a rest day for all species of wild bird and wild animal life, except raccoons, which may be hunted until 2:00 a.m. on Sunday mornings, except as provided in this subdivision. The provision of this subdivision that prohibits the hunting or killing on Sunday of any wild bird or wild animal, including any nuisance species, shall not apply to (i) any person who hunts or kills raccoons prior to 2:00 a.m. on Sunday morning or (ii) any person who hunts or kills any wild bird or wild animal, including nuisance species, with a gun, firearm or other weapon on Sunday (a) on private property, either as a landowner, the landowner's spouse or the children of the landowner, or with the written permission of the landowner, or (b) on the waters of the Commonwealth, only to the extent not prohibited by formal action of the Board. Notwithstanding the provisions of this subdivision, it shall be unlawful to hunt or kill any deer on Sunday with the aid or assistance of dogs. However, a person lawfully carrying a gun, firearm or other weapon on Sunday in an area that could be used for hunting shall not be presumed to be hunting on Sunday, absent evidence to the contrary.
Friday, January 20, 2012
Cunningham Pleads Fifth in Fast and Furious
This schism is the first big break in what has been a unified front in the government’s defense of itself in the gun-running scandal. Cunningham claims he is a victim of a conflict between two branches of government and will not be compelled to be a witnesses against himself, and make a statement that could be later used by a grand jury or special prosecutor to indict him on criminal charges.
New Look for NRABlog
Thursday, January 19, 2012
Sunday Hunting Advances to Full Senate
The Sunday Hunting Coalition lobbyist, Virginia's Secretary of Natural Resources, former DGIF Board Member Jimmy Hazel, the General Manager of Bass Pro Shops, and a few other citizens.
Speaking in opposition to the bill were:
A representative from the Virginia Hunting Dog Alliance, the lobbyist for the Independent Baptists, a Northern Neck Farmer, a number of rural property owners, a fox hunter, the Virginia Horse Council, Virginia Agribusiness and the Virginia Farm Bureau.
This is a small step in the right direction. While it may not be all that proponents of lifting the ban may have wanted, it strikes a good balance respecting the rights of land owners, while giving Virginian's an opportunity to hunt on Sunday if they wish. The bill will likely be up for a final vote in the Senate on Monday or Tuesday.
Please take a moment and thank the following members of the Senate Agriculture Committee for voting in favor of reporting the bill to the full Senate:
Watkins, Puckett, Blevins, McEachin, Petersen, Northam, Marsden, Stanley, Black, Miller, J.C., Ebbin
The New Face of Shooting
Pro-rights groups need to make sure we integrate these new shooters in our outreach and legislative activites. For far too long, the middle age, white male has been the face of the pro-rights movement and the anti-rights groups trot out "soccer moms" before legislative committees. There is no reason we can't counter this with our own female activists.
Wednesday, January 18, 2012
Castle Bills Passed By
All of the Castle Doctrine bills were passed by in the House Courts of Justice Criminal Subcommittee meeting today. The bills will be rescheduled for another meeting.
Range Protection Bill Introduced
Is This the Year for Sunday Hunting in Virginia
Just recently, a group of prominent politicians and sportsmen, including Dels. Albert Pollard and William Janis, and former state Sen. Ken Stolle, started the Virginia Sunday Hunting Coalition (virginiasundayhunting.org) to push for a repeal.As posted earlier today, the bills will get their first hearing in the Senate tomorrow.
Senate Sunday Hunting Bills on Thursday's Senate Ag Agenda
The four bills are Senate Bill 151, Senate Bill 173, Senate Bill 464, and Senate Bill 512.
Senate Bill 173 is different in that it allows landowners to hunt on their own property on Sundays. It also allows persons who have the written permission of the landowner to hunt on the landowner's property on Sundays. The other three bills simply strike the ban on Sunday hunting.
Castle Doctrine in House Courts Criminal Subcommittee Today
Both House Bill 14 and 47 would provide civil immunity for an occupant of a dwelling who uses any degree of physical force while engaged in the defense of his dwelling when (i) the other person has unlawfully entered the dwelling and committed an overt act toward the occupant or another person in the dwelling and (ii) the occupant reasonably believes that he or another person in the dwelling is in imminent serious danger of bodily injury.
House Bill 48 and 925 encodes a version of the "castle doctrine," allowing the use of physical force, including deadly force, by a person in his dwelling against an intruder in the dwelling who has committed an overt act against him or another person who is lawfully in the dwelling, without civil liability.
McEachin Bill Targets All Private Firearm Sales
Saturday, January 14, 2012
Bills Introduced to Repeal Handgun Rationing
Thursday, January 12, 2012
Washington Post Laments Republican State Senate Majority
By day’s end, the GOP acquired greater power through a raft of rule changes that not only mean they chair all committees but also allows them to have greater say over school funding, transportation and social issues, among others. Republicans now have the votes to approve legislation that would limit abortions and ease gun laws, which have been previously blocked by Senate Democrats.It should be an interesting 60 days reading the Post's coverage of the General Assembly.
Firearm Legislation So Far
Bill No. | House Bills Introduced LIS Bill Summary as Introduced (unless otherwise noted) Title | VSSA Position |
Emergency Services & Disaster Law; shall not be interpreted to prohibit carrying, etc., of firearms. | Support | |
Firearms; disposition thereof acquired by localities. | Support | |
Concealed handgun permits; confidentiality of permittee information. | Support | |
Concealed handgun permit; failure to produce upon demand of a law-enforcement officer, penalty | Support | |
Higher educational institutions; possession of concealed handguns by faculty members. | Support | |
Concealed handguns; persons who may lawfully carry hidden from common observation, penalty. | Support | |
Hunting; knowingly trespassing while carrying a firearm, penalty | Neutral at this time | |
Criminal history record information checks upon handgun purchases; dissemination of information. | Support | |
Courthouses; exception from prohibition against carrying weapon for city and county treasurers. | Neutral | |
Criminal history record information; record check to be performed on prospective transferee. (Annual attack on gun shows) | Opposed | |
Firearms; workplace rules by localities. | Support | |
Firearms; locality may adopt an ordinance that prohibits in libraries. | Opposed | |
Bill No. | Senate Bills Introduced LIS Bill Summary as Introduced (unless otherwise noted) Title | VSSA Position |
Concealed handgun permit applications; removes option for locality to require fingerprints.of firearms by persons subject to orders. | Support |
Wednesday, January 11, 2012
House of Delegates Committee Assignments
General Assembly Convenes Today
HB 20 Emergency Services & Disaster Law; shall not be interpreted to prohibit carrying, etc., of firearms.
HB 22 Firearms; disposition thereof acquired by localities. This bill prohibits localities from participating in compensated confiscation schemes (gun buybacks) without the governing body enacting an ordinance authorizing the activity. A similar bill passed a couple of years ago but was vetoed by Governor Kaine.
HB 25 Concealed handgun permits; confidentiality of permittee information.
HB 26 Concealed handgun permit; failure to produce upon demand of a law-enforcement officer, penalty.
HB 91 Higher educational institutions; possession of concealed handguns by faculty members.
HB 139 Concealed handguns; persons who may lawfully carry hidden from common observation, penalty.
This is the s"Constitutional Carry" measure. It retains the permit option for those who still wish to obtain a permit (i.e. so they can carry in states that have reciprocity with Virginia's permit).
HB 172 Hunting; knowingly trespassing while carrying a firearm, penalty.
HB 237 Criminal history record information checks upon handgun purchases; dissemination of information.
HB 288 Courthouses; exception from prohibition against carrying weapon for city and county treasurers. This bill allows city and county treasurers to carry in courthouses while on duty.
HB 375 Firearms; workplace rules by localities. This is a limited "Parking Lot" bill that prohibits localities from prohibiting their employees from storing their firearm in their locked vehicle while at work.
VSSA's priorities this session are repeal of handgun rationing and enacting Castle Doctrine. There will be other bills that VSSA will be lobbying for passage and it is expected there will be a few anti-rights bill. But the pro-freedom forces will be playing offense again this year while the anti-freedom crowd will be forced to play defense. It will be a very active session.
Monday, January 9, 2012
CSGV Spin on Gun Sales
In reality, the National Shooting Sports Foundation (the gun industry's trade association) refues to provide the media and public with sales data, which is unheard of. Instead, they offer reporters data on background checks. But the FBI has mide it patently clear that these checks "do not represent the number of firearms sold."That's right, and NSSF makes it clear the number they report is for background checks, not firearms sold. This from the most recent Bullet Points.
According to the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS), December 2011 set a new record for the most background checks in a single month (emphasis added). The December 2011 NSSF-adjusted NICS figure of 1,410,937 is an increase of 24.5 percent over the NSSF-adjusted NICS figure of 1,133,371 in December 2010. For comparison, the unadjusted December 2011 NICS figure of 1,854,400 reflects a 22.6 percent increase from the unadjusted NICS figure of 1,512,265 in December 2010. This marks the nineteenth straight month that NSSF-adjusted NICS figures have increased when compared to the same period the previous year.It is very likely that one background check could be for the purchase of more than one firearm (i.e. a father buying a shotgun or rifle for each of two sons as Christmas presents - two firearms sold under one background check). So, CSGV, the number of firearms sold is likely higher that the number of background checks, which should make Josh even more unhappy.
Update. The Richmond Times Dispatch makes the same point for us here.
Thursday, January 5, 2012
More on Virginia Background Check
Under the current process in Virginia, potential gun buyers are run through state and federal checks. The scans look for records that would prohibit a purchase - things such as a criminal history, residency status in the country, drug offenses, a dishonorable military discharge, and mental health adjudications.The state police say if Virginia transitions to using only the federal system, purchase restrictions unique to Virginia might not block a sale if the federal system were the only screening method in place. One such difference is that Virginia blocks individuals with juvenile felony convictions from purchasing firearms. But Virginia does not release juvenile information so a federal check would likely not block such a transaction. Delegate John Cosgrove will attempt to fix that.
A possible solution to that has been offered by Chesapeake Del. John Cosgrove, a Republican who previously filed legislation to allow juvenile records to be shared with the U.S. attorney general.The gun ban lobby opposes doing away with the Virginia background check. This is just one issue that VSSA will be tracking as the session begins.
Although his bill failed, Cosgrove said he plans to reintroduce it in the legislative session that begins Jan. 11 as a vehicle to create uniformity between that aspect of state policy and the federal background check system.
Wednesday, January 4, 2012
Governor McDonnell Would Approve Ending Virginia Background Check
Governor McDonnell says if it could be legally possible, he would support any move to do away with the criminal background check for those who buy firearms. McDonnell says he would replace the two-decade old state system with a federal procedure. That method screens prospective gun buyers for eligibility to get their hands on weapons. Gun rights groups have been calling on the governor to end Virginia's Firearms Transaction Program.The Virginia system has been plagued by delays in the last couple of years as budget cuts have caused the state police to cut back on staff amid an increase in firearm sales. The Virginia State Police charge $2 for each background check which is passed on to the purchaser. The federal background check does not impose a fee.
McDonnell Cautious on Campus Gun Ban, Reiterates Support for Repealing Gun Rationing
"There is some legitimate debate about whether an armed citizenry can stop problems, whether it's on a college campus or any other venue, but I'd have to see what the law looks like," McDonnell said.The Governor noted he doubts such legislation is likely to pass the General Assembly this year. But he also had good news for gun owners by restating his support for repealing Virginia's handgun rationing law.
"I would not be inclined to support that kind of legislation."
McDonnell said Tuesday that he remains supportive of another gun rights priority. The governor said he would sign a bill to repeal the state's one-gun-per-month limit on handgun purchases if lawmakers send it to him. McDonnell voted for the restriction as a legislator two decades ago because of concerns about "guns-for-drugs traffic" between Virginia and the Northeast.The General Assembly convenes on January 11 and repealing handgun rationing is VSSA's top priority.
But McDonnell said the state has since enacted additional measures to address those concerns "without having an arbitrary volume restriction on firearms."