Iowa Firearms Legislation Update

freelibertywriters.com ^ | 26 February, 2012 | Sean McClanahan

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Funnel week has come and gone in Des Moines, and while some good bills made it out of committee, several other good bills were allowed to die a death of apathy. Here's a rundown of what's what under the gold dome.

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HF 208 - This bill would modify the disposal requirements of firearms and ammunition seized by or forfeited to Iowa law enforcement agencies, including DPS. It essentially gives the agency that seized the firearms or ammunition greater control over how it is disposed of, including sale to the public. (Assigned to a subcommittee of Baudler, Kressig, and Tjepkes on 1/10/12, where it saw no further action and died.) *

HF 209 - This bill would provide self-defense training pursuant to 724.9A to domestic abuse & assault vicitms, and a fund to pay for the training. (Assigned to a subcommittee of Baudler, Kressig, and Tjepkes on 1/10/12, where it saw no further action and died.) *

HF 320 - This bill would protect firearms and ammunition from confiscation during a state of emergency, similar to what happened in New Orleans following Hurricane Katrina. (Assigned to a subcommittee of Windschitl, Brandenburg, and R. Olson on 1/10/12, where it saw no further action and died.) *

HF 2113 – This bill would restore “Constitutional Carry” rights to Iowans. (Assigned to a subcommittee of Baudler, Tjepkes, and R. Olson on 1/31/12, where it saw no further action and died.) * HF 2114 – This bill would put and end to the patchwork of anti-carry ordinances, rules, and regulations that localities have adopted since Iowa went to a “Shall Issue” system of permit issuance on 1/1/11. (Voted out of the full House Public Safety Committee in a severely weakened form, and now assigned HF 2361.)

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HF 2115 – This is a “clean-up” bill that will fix some of the problems that currently exist in Chapter 724. (Assigned to a subcommittee of Baudler, Windschitl, and Wolfe on 1/31/12. where it saw no further action and died.)

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HF 2116 – This bill would make the Iowa Permit to Acquire optional instead of mandatory. (Assigned to a subcommittee of Baudler, Tjepkes, and R. Olson on 1/31/12, where it saw no further action and died.)

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HF 2147 – This bill would allow licensed private investigators and private security officers to carry firearms on school property. This bill was previously known as HF 122 and HF 520. (Currently waiting for a vote on the House floor.)

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HF 2160 – This bill would reverse the State Fair Board's rule against the possession of firearms on fairground property. (Assigned to a subcommittee of Baudler, Kressig, and Tjepkes, on 2/1/12. where it saw no further action and died.) *

HF 2198 - This bill would remove the restriction on owning "offensive weapons" by citizens of Iowa. (Assigned to the House Public Safety Committe, but never assigned to a subcommittee, so it died.) *

HF 2215 - This bill would strengthen Iowa's "Stand Your Ground" and "Castle Doctrine" laws. Amendment H-8004 has been filed for this bill. (Currently waiting for a vote on the House floor.) *

HF 2361 - The successor to HF 2214, in the weakened form. Amendment H-8030 has been filed for this bill. (Currently waiting for a vote on the House floor.) *

HJR 2001 - This bill removes the ban on lead ammunition imposed by the Iowa Department of Natural Resources on hunters during Iowa's dove hunting season. (Passed in the House, waiting for action in the Senate.) *

HJR 2005 - This bill adds the right to keep and bear arms to the Iowa Constitution. (Voted out of the full House Public Safety Committee in a severely weakened form, and now assigned HJR 2009.) *

HJR 2009 - The successor to HJR 2005. (Currently waiting for a vote on the House floor.)

The track record of the House Public Safety Committee, and Chairman Clel Baudler, is abysmal. While the reversal to DNR's proposed lead ban and the Stand Your Ground/Castle Doctrine strengthening both passed unscathed, the Constitutional Amendment and Preemption Strengthening were both weakened when they were passed out. That's not the end of the world, because amendments can still take place on the House floor, but it's still disappointing, coming from someone who in the past professed to be “pro-gun.” In the meantime, other good bills never saw the light of day at all. The bill that would clean-up some of the issues with the current law. The bill that would remove the State Fairground's illegal jab at preemption. The bill that would allow Iowans to legally own suppressors and automatic weapons, like residents of nearly every other state in the country can do. All of these, and many others, were killed by a Committee Chair that did nothing to push them out for an up or down vote.

Why did he do that? That is a question that is very easy to answer. Because Rep. Baudler is not a friend of gun owners in Iowa at all. During a February 20th interview on WHO radio, he made that abundantly clear. Take a listen to some of the clips yourself. First, listen to him give Constitutional Carry a derogatory name, admit that it will never see the light of day, admit that it's wrong in his opinion, and claim that public safety is one of the main jobs of the legislature:

Baudler - Audio Clip 1

Public safety is not one of the main jobs of the legislature, and public safety is not an acceptable substitution for liberty. It's obvious that Rep. Baudler has never taken the time to understand the very Constitution that he's sworn to uphold.

In the second audio clip, you get to hear Rep. Baudler state that we are where we need to be in Iowa, and we do not need to progress any further with our firearms rights:

Baudler - Audio Clip 2

With this kind of thinking at the helm, Iowans will be lucky to ever get their rights restored to what our founding fathers intended.

Finally, Rep. Baudler passes the ultimate insult to Iowans, as he says that Iowa is just not ready for more advanced concepts like suppressor, automatic weapons, or permitless carry:

Baudler - Audio Clip 3

All in all, it's very easy to see why firearms rights in this state are going nowhere anytime soon. The man at the helm in the committee that pushes out legislation to the main floor does not believe in your right to carry unless you get permission from your government; he doesn't believe that we are ready for anything beyond what we already have; and he will ensure that we are all safe from ourselves, as our nanny-state government looks after our well being.

Iowans need to act on this NOW. They need to contact their House Representatives TODAY and let them know that we expect to see HF 2147 passed in its original wording, HF 2215 passed in its original wording (without H-8004), HF 2361 passed with amendment H-8030 attached, and HJR 2009 amended back to the wording presented in HJR 2005. These bills are now active, and they can see a vote at any time.

This is an election year, and it's too early to tell what will happen after November. One thing is clear. Rep. Baudler needs to be removed as the Chair of the House Public Safety Committee. Once the elections take place and a new legislative session starts in 2013, if the Republicans still hold the majority of the House, leadership there needs to be reminded of Baudler's contempt for gun rights – rights that were clearly stated in the party's platform planks at the last convention.

Baudler also needs to be removed from his position on the NRA Board of Directors. There is no place for someone with his views on gun rights siting in a position of power in the NRA. That he continues to hold that seat is a mockery of everything for which the NRA stands. If you are an NRA member, do not throw away your chance to vote if Baudler's seat comes up for election. You need to exercise your right to vote.

And, voters in his district need to do the same thing when his term of office is up in the Iowa House. He has ignored his party's planks, and he deserves to be replaced by someone who honor the positions of the party, and honor the rights and liberties of the people that he is elected to represent. If anyone ever needs to be reminded of that, just play the three audio clips I included in this post. Those clips speak volumes.

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There are links to the audio clips at the source.