Virginia: Expected Snow Storm Alters Committee Schedule in Richmond

Please Continue to Contact the members of the House Militia Sub-Committee #3

Due to an expected blizzard throughout the Commonwealth, the full House, Militia and Police Committee did not meet today as scheduled.  The Committee meeting has been rescheduled for Tuesday, February 9 at 7:00am, in House Room C. The Committee agenda has not been set at this time but NRA-ILA will notify you as soon as the docket is posted.

Also, House Militia Sub-Committee #3, which was scheduled to meet today as well to hear House Bill 32 and House Bill 72, has rescheduled  its hearing for Monday, February 8 at 5:00pm in the 8^th Floor West Conference Room.

House Bill 32, sponsored by Delegate Bob Marshall (R-13), would allow full-time faculty at a public higher educational institution in the Commonwealth of Virginia to carry a concealed firearm on campus, as long as they have a valid concealed handgun permit.

House Bill 72, sponsored by Delegate Charles Carrico (R-5), would reduce the penalty for accidentally carrying a firearm on school grounds from a Class 6 felony to a Class 1 misdemeanor.

Please continue to contact the members of the Sub-Committee and urge them to SUPPORT these two bills.

The House Militia Sub-Committee #1 met Thursday, February 4, and referred for passage to the full Militia, Police and Public Safety Committee the following NRA-ILA supported bills noted below:

House Bill 109, sponsored by Delegate Mark Cole (R-88), would repeal the statute which allows the governing body of any county to require the sellers of pistols and revolvers to furnish the Clerk of the Circuit Court with the name, address of the purchaser, date of purchase and the serial number, make and caliber of the weapon.

House Bill 171, sponsored by Delegate Brenda Pogge (R-96), would prohibit property owners, employers, or a business entity from establishing or enforcing any policy or rule restricting a person who may lawfully possess a firearm from storing a firearm locked in a motor vehicle in a parking lot or parking space.

House Bill 236, sponsored by Delegate Bill Janis (R-56), would repeal the prohibition of hunting within a half-of-mile of a subdivision.

House Bill 490, sponsored by Delegate Scott Lingamfelter (R-31), would direct the Department of State Police, in cooperation with the Secretary of Public Safety, to develop a plan to allow the State Police to issue lifetime concealed handgun permits to Virginia residents. The Department and the Secretary shall submit the plan, and any recommended legislative changes to implement the plan, to the Chairmen of the House Committee on Militia, Police, and Public Safety and the Senate Committee for Courts of Justice by October 15, 2010.

House Bill 871, sponsored by Delegate Ben Cline (R-24), would clarify that a person who is applying for a concealed handgun permit for the first time, has the same right to an ore tenus (verbal or oral statements) hearing if the permit is denied as a person who has previously held a concealed handgun permit.

House Bill 1070, sponsored by Delegate Clay Athey (R-18), would provide that a person who has a valid concealed handgun permit may not be barred from carrying a concealed handgun in any place or facility designated or used by the Governor, any political subdivision of the Commonwealth, or any other governmental entity as an emergency shelter or for the purpose of sheltering persons.

House Bill 1191, authored by Delegate H. Morgan Griffith (R-8), would allow a circuit court judge to authorize the Clerk of Court to issue concealed handgun permits in instances where the application is complete, the background check does not indicate that the applicant is disqualified, and after consulting with the local sheriff or police department, there are no other questions or issues surrounding the application.

House Bill 1217, sponsored by Delegate Lynwood Lewis (D-100), would allow local school boards to offer firearm safety education programs in the elementary grades. To assist local school boards opting to provide such instruction, the Board of Education must establish a standardized program of firearm safety education for students in the elementary school grades to promote the protection and safety of children. The bill requires that the program objectives incorporate, among other principles of firearm safety, accident prevention and the rules of the National Rifle Association's Eddie Eagle Gunsafe Program. Local school boards offering the program must comply with Board curriculum guidelines and integrate the instruction in appropriate subject areas, if feasible, to ensure that every elementary school student receives instruction in firearm safety education.

Thank you to all those who contacted the committee members in support of these bills.  Please continue to check your email and www.nraila.org for future updates.