Three important pro-gun bills continue to move closer to becoming law. If passed and enacted, the following legislation will be of benefit to responsible gun owners and sportsmen in the Mountain State.
House Bill 2431, sponsored by Delegate Rupie Phillips (D-24), passed on Monday in the state Senate Judiciary Committee and is scheduled for its first reading on the Senate floor today. HB 2431 would amend the application process for a Concealed Pistol/Revolver Permit, making West Virginia permit holders eligible for exemption from the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) for firearm purchases. Such carry permit holders have already cleared a background check. HB 2431 would conform state law to federal law and lead to greater reciprocity for permit holders throughout the United States.
Please contact your state Senator in support of HB 2431, and respectfully urge him or her to support this critical pro-gun legislation. Contact information for your state Senator can be found here.
House Bill 2471, sponsored by state House Speaker Rick Thompson (D-19), passed in the state Senate on Tuesday by a unanimous 34-0 vote, and now goes to the Governor for his expected signature. HB 2471 seeks to prohibit the restriction of the lawful possession, use, carrying, transfer, transportation, storage or display of a firearm or ammunition during any declared state of emergency. HB 2471 would protect law-abiding citizens in West Virginia from a violation of their constitutional rights reminiscent of what occurred in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina, where law-abiding citizens were stripped of their lawfully owned firearms by overzealous government officials leaving them defenseless and unable to protect their families and property.
Please contact Governor Earl Ray Tomblin and respectfully ask him to sign House Bill 2471 into law. Click here to send him an e-mail.
Senate Bill 369, sponsored by state Senator John Unger (D-16), passed on its first reading in the House of Delegates and is now on the special calendar. SB 369 would increase the number of states that recognize a West Virginia Concealed Pistol/Revolver Permit and allow residents of another state, who hold a valid out-of-state permit or license, to carry in West Virginia. A committee amendment to SB 369 was added which would allow certain judicial officials to be exempted from certain fees when applying for a Concealed Pistol/Revolver Permit.
Please contact your Delegate(s) in support of SB 369, and respectfully urge them to support this important pro-gun reform bill. Contact information for your Delegate(s) can be found here.