Texas Action Needed - Tenants' Second Amendment Rights Bill to be Considered by Texas House Committee This Week

Dear Texas NRA Member:

On Wednesday, February 27, the Texas House Committee on Homeland Security & Public Safety will consider House Bill 302, an NRA-backed measure sponsored by Rep. Dennis Paul (R-Houston) that protects the rights of owners or tenants of residential units or commercial spaces to lawfully possess firearms and ammunition in those locations, and to transport them directly en route between their vehicles and those residential units or commercial spaces.

Landlords and building owners can currently disenfranchise gun owners and effectively deny them the ability to protect themselves through contractual provisions prohibiting the possession or storage of firearms in apartment leases, condominium rules or commercial leases.  Additionally, posting notice in common areas under Penal Code Section 30.05, 30.06 or 30.07 that prohibits firearms from being carried between personal vehicles and residential dwelling units or commercial offices forces gun owners to consider leaving their firearms in their cars or trucks, making them susceptible to theft.  This method of restricting the carrying of handguns also conflicts with Penal Code Section 46.02, which allows a person to carry a handgun directly en route to a motor vehicle owned or controlled by the person.

NRA-ILA could use your help on this bill in the following ways:

(1) Send us examples of restrictive residential or commercial lease provisions or pictures of 30.06/30.07 signs posted on residential or commercial property, along with a description of how these restrictions directly impact you.  Please email those to [email protected]before Wednesday.

(2) If you live near Austin, please let us know if you would be available to testify before the committee, which meets at 8:00am on Wednesday in Room E2.016 in the Capitol Extension in Austin.  Please contact [email protected] before Wednesday.  We need just a few impact witnesses, not a huge turnout.

(3) Contact members of the committee and let them know that you support House Bill 302.  Their contact information can be found here.  Be sure to thank those who have signed on as co-authors to the bill: Chairman Poncho Nevarez, Rep. DeWayne Burns, Rep. Travis Clardy, & Rep. Mike Lang (and, of course, Rep. Dennis Paul for sponsoring the measure.)