3/9/2005
-- The Illinois House Agricultural and Conservation Committee
yesterday voted overwhelmingly to approve two bills that would
allow citizens to carry concealed weapons.
The bills--HB 2567 and HB 2607--are nearly
identical, differing primarily as to which law enforcement agency
would be responsible for issuing permits.
HB 2607, sponsored by Representatives
David Reis, Mike Bost, Brandon W. Phelps, and John E. Bradley,
would require county sheriffs' departments to issue permits to
carry.
HB 2567, sponsored by Representatives
Brandon Phelps and Gary Hannig, would make the Illinois Department
of State Police the issuing agency.
These differences aside, the bills are
very much similar to shall-issue laws in place in 37 other states.
Only four states--Illinois, Wisconsin, Nebraska, and Kansas--have
no provision for citizens to be able to legally carry concealed
weapons. (Shall-issue legislation has been advancing in Nebraska,
Kansas and Wisconsin every year. Last year, an override of Wisconsin
Governor Doyle's veto of shall-issue legislation failed by just
one vote).
Also last year, Ohio became the 46th state
to pass legislation allowing citizens to carry concealed weapons.
Supporters of both of the Illinois bills
acknowledge that it will be an uphill battle to get the bills
passed over Governor Rod Blagojevich's promised veto. Nonetheless,
the bill's supporters are determined to go the distance.
With the Agriculture and Conservation
Committee having voted in favor of both bills, they now head to
the House for a full floor vote.
NRA lobbyist Todd Vandermyde said the
concealed-carry bills have a "50-50 shot" of passing
the House.
Opponents, meanwhile, voiced concerns
about "blood in the streets," "shootouts at every
stoplight," "a return to Dodge City," and other
arguments that have been repeated almost verbatim in states where
shall-issue concealed carry laws have been debated.
"I'm heartsick," said House Majority Leader Barbara
Flynn Currie (D-Chicago), a major advocate of gun control. The
NRA is on a "rampage" in the state capitol of Springfield,
Currie said.
One reason for Representative Currie's
"heartsickness" would be that both bills would prevent
the city of Chicago from prohibiting the carrying of concealed
weapons within city limits by trying to establish a Home Rule
exemption. Currently, guns are all but illegal in Chicago, with
the exception of those registered years ago.
Even if the bills do not pass the House
or Senate, supporters believe that they are not only paving ground
for future efforts, but also weakening Governor Blagojevich's
political support in areas outside of Chicago.
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