Posted on 01/08/2004 4:17:45 AM PST by MissTargets
Taft to sign hidden gun bill
By JOHN McCARTHY The Associated Press
COLUMBUS - Lawmakers passed a bill Wednesday to allow Ohioans to carry hidden guns, and Gov. Bob Taft said he will sign it.
The Senate vote was 25-8, and the House vote was 69-24. Taft said he looked forward to signing the bill. The vote marked the first time the Legislature and the governor's office have agreed to a deal after a decade of debate on the highly contentious issue.
Ohioans who apply for permits to carry concealed weapons would have to pay a fee, undergo background checks and be trained in the use of a weapon.
The bill also makes the names of permit holders in each county available to reporters who ask a sheriff's department for the names. Taft's insistence on this provision derailed the bill late last year after House lawmakers balked.
But House Speaker Larry Householder this week agreed to go along with the requirement, which the Ohio Senate had already informally agreed to.
Taft said the bill was a reasonable compromise that would help Ohioans to protect themselves.
''House Bill 12 balances the Second Amendment rights I have strongly supported with public safety and public records concerns. I look forward to signing it,'' Taft said in a statement.
Sen. Eric Fingerhut, a Cleveland Democrat and a longtime conceal-carry opponent, was resigned to the bill becoming law.
''The governor's decision is a complete cave-in to the gun lobby,'' Fingerhut said.
He predicted that proponents of gun rights would chip away at the bill, especially the public records and background check provisions.
Taft has supported the rights of people to own and carry guns, but he insisted on the restrictions that were put in the bill, spokesman Orest Holubec said.
''Governor Taft's administrative staff members and House and Senate leaders worked very hard to craft a responsible bill,'' Holubec said.
Householder, a Glenford Republican, said changes by future legislatures were likely.
''It's comparable to any legislation. It's always subject to change. We've got a great history in the General Assembly of having a lot of responsibility, a lot of accountability,'' he said.
Taft had long said he would only sign the bill if law enforcement supported it. As that backing fell into place, he raised the issue of public records, leading some supporters to accuse him of looking for reasons to veto the bill.
The State Highway Patrol dropped its earlier opposition once the bill said weapons in vehicles must be locked away or holstered in plain view.
Ohio would become the 46th state to allow carrying concealed weapons in some form.
The issue has been in the Legislature since 1995, when the Senate passed a bill sponsored by then-Sen. Joseph Vukovich, a Youngstown Democrat. However, it stalled in the House because of opposition from Republican Gov. George Voinovich and then-Speaker Jo Ann Davidson, a suburban Columbus Republican. Two other bills died under Davidson.
The issue was revived with the election of Taft, who promised during his first campaign for governor that he would sign a bill supported by law enforcement.
In 2001, competing bills were introduced. One of the bills, which carried almost no restrictions, received only one hearing while the other stalled when talks broke down between the governor's office and the Legislature.
In the Legislature, the issue has not been partisan but rather a debate between urban lawmakers, whose districts have higher crime rates, and rural and suburban lawmakers who say their constituents need guns for protection.
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Figures. Voinovich is such a loser.
Perhaps. But if you watch George V's antics in congress, you'll see he's as much a RINO as she might be. Taft's not much better, but at least he'll sign the bill.
Good! These should be published weekly in the major city newspapers, under the heading "Don't Try to Rob or Rape US!"
Let's just make this sound a little more ominous, shall we? Will you get a "hidden gun" permit? No, you we get a Concealed Carry Permit.
Hidden guns are what criminals have. Law abiding citizens have CCW's.
Yes, because we all know this has happened in the other 37 states that allow CCW. Along with the usual blood flowing in the streets like the old west. NOT!
The only reason he is going to sign it, is because it is veto proof, the legislature wants it overwelmingly. Taft is still very much an anti-gun liberal.
I doubt we've seen the last of him in the political arena. He's the type republican the RNC seems to like anymore. Wish they'd get their nose out of state politics
I didn't care for their choice of words, in the headline either.
A real negative spin.
I cannot imagine reporters just running down to the local sheriff's office for the name of permit holders. Unless someone is arrested, detainted for whatever reason. Then they might check. Even if the offense does not have anything to do with a CCW permit, I am sure it will be published.
My feelings on this infomation is mixed. We will see how it plays out.
That is a concern of mine. With all the opposition to this bill, and how long it took to get passed, there just might be a problem, with the access to the list of permit holders.
Yeah, right. Only because of threat of veto overide. But, we finally got it. Now to go gun shopping. :)
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