Free Republic

Associated Press Writer TALLAHASSEE -- Gun range owners will get immunity from lead cleanup lawsuits under certain conditions and police will be banned from keeping electronic lists of law-abiding gun owners under bills signed Thursday by Gov. Jeb Bush. The National Rifle Association praised Bush for signing the bills, both of which were pushed hard by the gun-owners' group. The range bill arose out of a Pinellas County lawsuit that sought to force a gun range to clean up lead under the ground. Environmentalists say if the lead leaches into the groundwater it can be dangerous. The measure (SB 1156),...

A bill that would prevent state regulators from filing environmental lawsuits against sport-shooting ranges, where lead bullets can accumulate and potentially contaminate groundwater, took another step forward Thursday in the Florida Senate. The bill (SB 1156) now requires range owners and operators to use best management practices suggested by the Department of Environmental Protection to ease any environmental degradation. By following these guidelines, ranges would be exempt from regulators' lawsuits. "Florida will hold out a carrot, and that carrot is your compliance with best management practices," said Sen. Rod Smith, D-Alachua. The DEP would have until next January to make...