Make sure your rights don't get left in the dugout as the Texas Legislature goes into extra innings
The first special session of the Texas Legislature ended last week without bringing forward priority Second Amendment legislation. The Governor, who has so far chosen not to include pro-Second Amendment legislation on the list of items to be considered in these special sessions, called state lawmakers back to town today for a second time to revisit other legislation. You may recall that anti-gun state Senator Wendy Davis (D-Fort Worth) and her Democratic colleagues in the Texas Senate blocked NRA-backed legislation allowing adult Concealed Handgun Licensees to carry firearms for self-defense on college and university campuses from coming up for a final vote during the regular session that ended Memorial Day weekend.
In addition, according to the Austin American Statesman, public university officials -- many of whom have strongly opposed NRA-backed campus personal protection bills -- are urging him to add nearly $3 billion in construction bonds, otherwise known as "tuition revenue bonds" or TRBs, to the list of issue items the House and Senate will consider during this second special session. In fact, state Representative Dan Branch, a Republican from Dallas who is considering a run for statewide office, filed a TRB bill during the first special session.
Surely if the Governor were to expand the call of this session's agenda and add a higher education priority item like TRBs, then he would also add a priority Second Amendment issue like campus carry, right? And certainly, the Republican Senate and House leadership which has expended enormous amounts of political capital attempting to address other issues would put that same energy and focus into passing pro-gun legislation if it were added to the agenda, correct? These are questions that Second Amendment advocates -- including the more than 500,000 CHLs in Texas -- deserve an answer to going into 2014 when nearly all statewide officials and state lawmakers will be running for re-election or (as mentioned) higher office.
Send your questions to Governor Perry:
Governor Rick Perry
Governor Perry's Facebook Page
E-mail by clicking here
Phone: 512-463-2000
Send your questions to Senate and House leaders:
Lieutenant Governor David Dewhurst
Lieutenant Governor Dewhurst's Facebook Page
E-mail by clicking here.
Phone: 512-463-0001
House Speaker Joe Straus
Speaker Straus's Facebook Page
E-mail by clicking here.
Phone: 512-463-1000
State Representative Dan Branch (R-Dallas). Rep. Branch is the House Higher Education Committee Chairman and previous author of TRB bills.
E-mail: dan.branch@house.state.tx.us
Phone: 512-463-0367
