HB 937

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Restaurant Carry In North Carolina Has Its First Anniversary And Carry Is Banned At The State Fair

October 6, 2014 by 2 Comments

The ability to carry concealed in a restaurant or eating establishment in North Carolina had its first anniversary this past week. The anniversary brings with it a measure of disappointment for the naysayers and gun prohibitionists. Blood didn’t run in the streets and there weren’t boozy shoot-outs on a regular basis. In fact, according to research by Grass Roots North Carolina, there wasn’t even one shooting involving a concealed carry holder in a restaurant serving alcohol.

House Bill 937, which became effective on October 1, 2013, dramatically expanded North Carolina’s concealed handgun law into restaurants where alcohol is sold and consumed, assemblies of people for which admission is charged, parades and funerals, further into state and municipal parks, and even to a limited extent into educational properties.


‘Guns and alcohol don’t mix’?


As always when we expand concealed handgun laws, opponents and media naysayers predicted shootings in bars, guns stolen from vehicles at schools, and various other sorts of mayhem using platitudes like “guns and alcohol don’t mix.”


GRNC explained endlessly that concealed handgun permit-holders, by virtue of background checks and training, had proven themselves sane, sober and law-abiding since 1995, with a rate of permit revocation on the order of three tens of a single percent. We explained that permit-holders in restaurants would still be prohibited from imbibing alcohol.


But the dire predictions persisted. Editorials ridiculed legislators. UNC president Tom Ross sent UNC police chiefs to testify against the bill, claiming it would hamper their ability to protect students. Gun control activists pushed restaurants to post against concealed carry.


So what has happened?


It has now been one year since HB 937 became effective. So what has happened? Nothing. GRNC monitors clipping services for gun-related incidents. Just like Virginia, Ohio, Tennessee and other states which adopted restaurant carry, however, we have been unable to find a single instance of a concealed handgun permit-holder misusing a gun in a restaurant or educational property.


So when will the media naysayers apologize? Will the media acknowledge the anniversary and the absolute lack of negative impact?


NC State Fair: The latest battleground


In the latest battle, Agriculture Commissioner Steve Troxler says he will post the North Carolina State Fair against concealed carry even though statutes adopted in HB 937 now prohibit him from doing so. He apparently believes that even despite passing concealed carry in 1995; Castle Doctrine/Stand Your Ground and expanded concealed carry into parks and elsewhere in 2011; and HB 937 in 2013 – all without the mayhem predicted by opponents – somehow, the state fair must be a different and more dangerous place than all the others.


So GRNC asks both Troxler and the media, “Where’s the mayhem?”

It is against this background that GRNC is taking NC Agriculture Commissioner Steve Troxler (R-NC) to task for trying to continue the ban on carry at the North Carolina State Fair. HB 937 which permits restaurant carry also permitted carry at assemblies where an admission is charged such as the State Fair. GRNC is threatening legal action to make Ag Commissioner Troxler and the State Fair to abide by the law.

Sean Sorrentino of An NC Gun Blog attended Troxler’s press conference and questioned him about the decision to post the State Fair. Troxler replied that it was long-standing policy to post against carry and he’d leave it to the lawyers about the interpretation of the new law.

Paul Valone, President of GRNC, has met with Troxler last Monday. As Valone says, Troxler is not known as a liberal or anti-gun but that still doesn’t make him right. GRNC will be going to court seeking a temporary restraining order before the fair opens in about a week.

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Maybe October 1st Is An Auspicious Day After All

October 1, 2013 by

Today, October 1st, marks the start of a number of things – some good and some bad.

Of course, you’d have to be living in a cabin in Montana with no electricity, no water, and no radio/TV like the Unabomber not to know that the Federal government has “shut down” today. Obama is blaming the Republicans for being ideologues and the Republicans are blaming the Democrats and Obama for continually rejecting the budget.

Another thing that today marks is the beginning of ObamaCare. This is otherwise known as the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. We still don’t quite know what is in even after they passed it despite what former Speaker Nancy Pelosi said.

October 1st is also the first day that we in North Carolina can carry concealed in restaurants that serve alcohol. Despite what the gun prohibitionists would have you believe, you still cannot legally drink and carry concealed. The same law will now also allow you to store your firearm in your locked vehicle if you hold a concealed carry permit while on educational property. This means that when I go to teach on Monday nights at the western-most state university in North Caroloina, so long as I store my pistol in my car vault, I’m good to go. The very thought has the Dookies upset and they are demanding that their administration proclaim to all the world that their university which has decided not to allow guns on campus is a gun-free zone.

On a final note, October 1st also marks the day that the Civilian Marksmanship’s Anniston (Alabama) is opening the CMP Custom Gun Shop which will work on most USGI rifles. This program is open to anyone who has qualified to purchase rifles from the CMP.

CMP will specialize in working on the M1 Garand, M1 Carbine, 1903 and 1903A3 Springfield, the 1917 Enfield and the Krag. Other rifles like the Remington 40X, Mossberg 44 and H&R Model 12 can also be serviced if needed. CMP will NOT be working on shotguns, pistols, revolvers, M14/M1A, AR15 style rifles or other commercially-produced modern rifles.

The CMP Custom Shop can work on rifles that may have been purchased elsewhere as long as they were made by a USGI contractor. Some examples include: Springfield Armory (not Springfield Inc.), Harrington & Richardson, Winchester, International Harvester, Remington, Rock Island, Eddystone, Inland, Underwood, Rock-Ola, Quality Hardware, National Postal meter, Standard Products, IBM, Irwin-Pederson and Saginaw.

There are many NON-USGI copies of the M1 Garand, 1903 Springfield and especially the M1 Carbine that CMP will be unable to work on.

Maybe, despite all the nonsense going on and coming out of Washington, at least for those of us in the gun culture October 1st will prove to be quite an auspicious day after all.

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GRNC On HB 937 Being Signed Into Law

July 30, 2013 by

Grass Roots North Carolina released a statement last night thanking Gov. Pat McCrory (R-NC) for signing HB 937 into law. While they are more generous towards the governor than I was in the last post, it is probably because they are better at this political stuff than I am.

They are also asking people to send a note of thanks to McCrory, Speaker Thom Tillis (R-Mecklenburg), and Senate President Pro-Tem Phil Berger (R-Rockingham). I think that is a smart idea. Politicians too often hear from us when they’ve screwed up or done something to piss us off. They need to hear from us with the attaboys as well. It will help reinforce their “proper behavior” when it comes to gun rights.

From GRNC:

HB 937 Finally Becomes Law!

Governor signs HB 937 just minutes ago…

GRNC has learned that Governor McCrory has just signed HB 937 into law. After a long and sometimes hard fight to push HB 937 through the North Carolina General Assembly (NCGA) and onto the Governor’s desk, victory is finally at hand. More information concerning this issue will follow in future GRNC alerts, but for now we can take a collective breath and celebrate by thanking those who have worked hard to move HB 937 from the House and Senate all the way to the Governor’s desk.

Below, you will see contact information for many of the key legislators involved. Please take a moment to thank them for their hard work and dedication. Above all, GRNC would like to thank all of YOU for your tireless efforts through this process! Without your dedication and steadfast resolve, HB 937 would have been left on the shelf or buried in yet another obscure committee to die a low death. Despite efforts to derail HB 937 at several points in its journey, Grass Roots North Carolina worked hard to claim victory and that victory would not have been possible without YOUR help!

Thank you to all of our members and volunteers!

IMMEDIATE ACTION REQUIRED!

  • Contact legislators: Using the contact info below, contact those legislators that worked hard to pass HB 937 and thank them for their resolve.


  • Support GRNC: GRNC needs your support to help combat the efforts against your rights as gun owners. Join or renew your membership! http://www.grnc.org/join-grnc/join-grnc-online

CONTACT INFO

Speaker Thom Tillis: Thom.Tillis@ncleg.net

Senate President Pro Tem Phil Berger: Phil.Berger@ncleg.net

Gov. Pat McCrory: Email using webpage at http://www.governor.state.nc.us/contact/email-pat

Use the following cut-and-paste email list to contact NC House Republicans and Senators:
Justin.Burr@ncleg.net Tim.Moore@ncleg.net Larry.Pittman@ncleg.net Jacqueline.Schaffer@ncleg.net Tom.Apodaca@ncleg.net Buck.Newton@ncleg.net

DELIVER THIS MESSAGE

Suggested Subject: “Thank you for passing HB 937!”

Dear Speaker Tillis/President Pro Tem Phil Berger/Governor Pat McCrory/Representative/Senator:

I wanted to take a moment and thank you for all of your hard work and effort in passing HB 937 and getting it to the Governor’s desk in a timely manner. This bill will undoubtedly enable safe and sane gun owners in North Carolina to better protect themselves and their families and it will also provide stiffer penalties for those who commit crimes with guns.

Again, thank you for your hard work and diligence!

Respectfully,

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Gov. McCrory Signs HB 937 Into Law

July 30, 2013 by 9 Comments

Gov. Pat McCrory (R-NC) signed HB 937 into law today. In a release regarding the signing of many bills, he said in reference to this bill:

HB 937 (Reps. Schaffer, Burr, Faircloth and Cleveland) Amend Various Firearms Laws – This legislation amends state firearms laws.

“This legislation prohibits guns in classrooms, dorms, and administrative buildings on college campuses. Additionally, this legislation gives bar owners the authority to prohibit guns in their establishments. Following my threat of a veto, we worked closely with law enforcement officials across the state so that changes were made to the original legislation. This ensured that permitting is still required for a concealed carry permit and is implemented at the local level.” – Governor Pat McCrory

“Like many North Carolinians, I am a strong supporter of the 2nd Amendment. As a 34-year veteran of law enforcement here in North Carolina, I believe it’s important that Sherriff’s offices continue to administer the certification process for concealed carry permits. I would like to thank Governor Pat McCrory for his efforts on behalf of public safety in ensuring this common sense provision remained in HB 937.” – Guilford County Sherriff BJ Barnes

I’m glad that McCrory signed the bill but his and Barnes’ description of what was left out of the bill is as full of crap as the drivel from the gun prohibitionists regarding guns in restaurants and bars.

As much as I would have liked it, no version of the bill ever proposed having concealed carry within classrooms, dorms, or other university buildings. The bill only addressed employees living on campus and permit holder storing firearms in their locked vehicles – and this was left in the bill despite the objections of the University of North Carolina System and its administration.

Even worse is the suggestion that the Concealed Handgun Permit was going to be taken from the state’s sheriffs. What was going to be dropped with the Jim Crow-era law that allowed sheriffs to deny African-Americans handguns. This was the pistol purchase permit system which still is administered in disparate ways county to county. This bill will correct some of that.

To say I’m not pleased by the comments of either the governor or Sheriff Barnes is an understatement.

UPDATE: To answer a question posed in the comments as to when the law becomes effective, for the most part, it will be October 1, 2013.

The only section that specifically goes into effect immediately is Section 17.3. This section instructs sheriffs to go through the outstanding pistol purchase permits that have been issued to see if any of them need to be revoked because the holder has become a prohibited person under the standards set forth in GS 14-404(h).

GS 14-404(h) was established by Section 17.2(a) of the bill. Subsection (h) states:

the occurrence of any event or condition subsequent to the issuance of the permit, or the applicant’s subsequent inability to meet a
requirement under this Article, which would have resulted in a denial of the application submitted to obtain the permit if the event,
condition, or the applicant’s current inability to meet a statutory requirement had existed at the time of the application and prior to the issuance of the permit
.

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HB 937 Passes Both Houses And Is Sent To Governor

July 24, 2013 by 2 Comments

It appears that the North Carolina General Assembly can get its act together when it is under time pressure. The amended HB 937 was passed by both houses of the General Assembly this evening. Earlier reports had it being on the calendar for tomorrow.

The vote was 73-41 in favor of the amendment from the Conference Committee in the House while the Senate passed it by a vote of 32-14. The roll call of the votes are not available yet.

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Agreement Reached On HB 937

July 23, 2013 by 3 Comments

The Conference Committee hammering out differences between the Senate version and the House version of HB 937 has reported back to the North Carolina General Assembly with an amended bill which can be found here.

The bill has been put on the legislative calendar for an up-down vote tomorrow. I would expect it to pass.

I will have more on the changes as I read the Committee’s report.

UPDATE: The bill stays the same except for Sections 17 and 18.  The changes include:

  • Section 17.1 drops the word “license” from § 14-403.
  • Section 17.2(a) changes § 14-404 to require that a person denied a pistol purchase permit be given the reason for the denial; that the denial include specific facts as to why the applicant was denied including listing by statute number the applicable law. 
  •  Section 17.2(a) requires the sheriff to keep a list of denials, minus the personally identifying information, including the specific reason for a denial as a public record.
  • Section 17.2(a) requires the Clerk of Court to send records to the NICS System within 48 hours of being notified of any judicial finding, court order, or other factual matters that would cause a person to be denied a permit under
    § 14-404
  •  Section 17.2(a) sets the cost of a purchase permit at $5; does not allow any limit on the number or frequency of permits issued to an individual; does not allow the sheriff charge extra for the investigation, processing, or medical background checks; and requires either a permit or denial be given to the applicant within 14 days.
  • Section 17.2(a) requires the revocation of a permit for anything that happens subsequent to the permit’s issuance that would have denied a permit in the first place. Also required is that the permit holder surrender his or her permit when notified of its revocation.
  • Section 17.2(b) requires a report from the Administrative Office of the Courts regarding the implementation of the Clerk of Court NICS System notification requirement.
  • Section 17.2(c) sets the effective date for NICS System notification at July 1, 2014; for the remainder of Section 17.2(a) at October 1, 2013; and for the rest of Section 17 immediately upon becoming law.
  • Section 17.3 requires the sheriff of a county to examine the validity of all outstanding permits by January 31, 2014. If there are any that would be subject to revocation, he or she is to take steps as detailed above. A report is required from each sheriff on results of their review by March 31, 2014.
  • Section 17.4 requires sheriffs to keep a record of permits issued as well as denials. These records are non-public and confidential.
  • Section 18 just makes a minor clerical change to GS 14-315(b1)(1) which concerns a prohibition on giving or selling weapons to minors.
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Time To Turn The Screws Down On Republicans In NC

July 23, 2013 by

It is time for the Republicans in the North Carolina General Assembly to either put up or shut up. They talk a good game when they want gun owners votes but when given a chance to actually send a decent gun bill to the governor, they waffle and drag their feet.

HB 937 which would amend a number of gun laws in North Carolina has passed both the House and the Senate in different forms. When given a choice on passing the stronger of the two versions, the House Republicans waffled and sent it to a conference committee. Now the conference committee which is composed entirely of Republicans is dragging its feet. The General Assembly is scheduled to adjourn this coming Friday.

We went through this garbage in the last session where one house passed restaurant carry and then it was never acted upon by the other house. It is time for this nonsense to stop. The conference committee needs to report out a bill without garbage attached to it and to do it now.

As Grass Roots North Carolina notes in their alert below, Republicans will be held accountable if they fail to pass this bill. Instead of considering a bill to honor All-American Cities, why not do something that is substantive and not symbolic?

The clock to adjournment is ticking…IT IS TIME TO BRING THE HEAT!

While the gun rights of North Carolinians hang in the balance, Republican leadership can’t stop playing political games. They are being manipulated by the competing misguided interests of the NC Sheriffs’ Association (NCSA) and NRA.

The political angst has reached the level that Rep. Jacqueline Schaffer has begun emailing accusations that GRNC is spreading “inaccurate information”. GRNC President Paul Valone quickly responded:

“As I just told your legislative assistant, Sharon, I would love to know what is “inaccurate” about our reporting. My understanding was that to close what you yourself have called the “arming felons loophole,” sans repeal of all or part of the purchase permit statute, you suggested requiring NICS checks if purchase permits were older than 30 days. As we have said all along (and I have numerous positions issued to Republicans to this effect), punishing gun owners for the malfeasance of the North Carolina Sheriffs’ Association is unacceptable to us. So please, tell me what is “inaccurate,” before I am forced to report to 87,000 gun owners that it is actually you who is disseminating false information.“

It is time to stop the blame game and pandering to NCSA and NRA. These organizations didn’t elect the Assembly. You did. Have they forgotten who they represent?

Apparently they need another reminder. GRNC has set-up a “Pass HB 937” petition at http://grnc.org/pass-h937 that will help the politicians focus on the issue. Sign it, and pass along the link to your friends.

The Assembly is set to adjourn this Friday. We only have a few more days to instill sense in both the Assembly and Governor McCrory and get this bill passed.

We have fought for years for this progress. Failure IS NOT AN OPTION!

IMMEDIATE ACTION REQUIRED!

You need to do three things:

  1. Call the three Republican leaders, Gov. McCrory, Speaker Tillis, President Pro Tempore Berger;

  2. Sign the petition and forward it to others; and

  3. Send the copy-and-paste message to all Republicans in the NC House and Senate

MAKE SURE TO BOTH CALL AND EMAIL Sen. Berger, Speaker Tillis and Gov. McCrory. This is our last chance to make an impression. Let’s make it GOOD!

CONTACT INFORMATION

Speaker Thom Tillis, 919-733-3451, Email: Thom.Tillis@ncleg.net

Senate President Pro Tem Phil Berger, 919-733-5708, Email: Phil.Berger@ncleg.net

Gov. Pat McCrory, 919-814-2000, Email using BOTH this address governor.office@nc.gov AND the webpage at http://www.governor.state.nc.us/contact/email-pat

Use the following cut-and-paste email list to contact NC House Republicans:

Dean.Arp@ncleg.net; Marilyn.Avila@ncleg.net; John.Bell@ncleg.net; Hugh.Blackwell@ncleg.net; Jamie.Boles@ncleg.net; Robert.Brawley@ncleg.net; Brian.Brown@ncleg.net; Rayne.Brown@ncleg.net; Rob.Bryan@ncleg.net; Dana.Bumgardner@ncleg.net; Justin.Burr@ncleg.net; Rick.Catlin@ncleg.net; George.Cleveland@ncleg.net; Jeff.Collins@ncleg.net; Debra.Conrad@ncleg.net; Leo.Daughtry@ncleg.net; Ted.Davis@ncleg.net; Jimmy.Dixon@ncleg.net; Josh.Dobson@ncleg.net; Jerry.Dockham@ncleg.net; Nelson.Dollar@ncleg.net; Jeffrey.Elmore@ncleg.net; John.Faircloth@ncleg.net; Jim.Fulghum@ncleg.net; Mike.Hager@ncleg.net; Jon.Hardister@ncleg.net; Kelly.Hastings@ncleg.net; Mark.Hollo@ncleg.net; Bryan.Holloway@ncleg.net; Craig.Horn@ncleg.net; Julia.Howard@ncleg.net; Pat.Hurley@ncleg.net; Frank.Iler@ncleg.net; Charles.Jeter@ncleg.net; Linda.Johnson2@ncleg.net; Bert.Jones@ncleg.net; Jonathan.Jordan@ncleg.net; Donny.Lambeth@ncleg.net; James.Langdon@ncleg.net; David.Lewis@ncleg.net; Chris.Malone@ncleg.net; Susan.Martin@ncleg.net; Pat.McElraft@ncleg.net; Chuck.McGrady@ncleg.net; Allen.McNeill@ncleg.net; Chris.Millis@ncleg.net; Tim.Moffitt@ncleg.net; Tim.Moore@ncleg.net; Tom.Murry@ncleg.net; Michele.Presnell@ncleg.net; Nathan.Ramsey@ncleg.net; Dennis.Riddell@ncleg.net; Stephen.Ross@ncleg.net; Jason.Saine@ncleg.net; Ruth.Samuelson@ncleg.net; Jacqueline.Schaffer@ncleg.net; Mitchell.Setzer@ncleg.net; Phil.Shepard@ncleg.net; Paul.Stam@ncleg.net; Edgar.Starnes@ncleg.net; Bob.Steinburg@ncleg.net; Sarah.Stevens@ncleg.net; Michael.Stone@ncleg.net; John.Szoka@ncleg.net; Thom.Tillis@ncleg.net; John.Torbett@ncleg.net; Rena.Turner@ncleg.net; Harry.Warren@ncleg.net; Andy.Wells@ncleg.net; Roger.West@ncleg.net; Chris.Whitmire@ncleg.net

Use the following cut-and-paste email list to contact NC Senate Republicans:

Austin.Allran@ncleg.net, Tom.Apodaca@ncleg.net, Chad.Barefoot@ncleg.net, Tamara.Barringer@ncleg.net, Phil.Berger@ncleg.net, Stan.Bingham@ncleg.net, Andrew.Brock@ncleg.net, Harry.Brown@ncleg.net, Peter.Brunstetter@ncleg.net, Bill.Cook@ncleg.net, David.Curtis@ncleg.net, Warren.Daniel@ncleg.net, Jim.Davis@ncleg.net, Thom.Goolsby@ncleg.net, Rick.Gunn@ncleg.net, Kathy.Harrington@ncleg.net, Fletcher.Hartsell@ncleg.net, Ralph.Hise@ncleg.net, Neal.Hunt@ncleg.net, Brent.Jackson@ncleg.net, Wesley.Meredith@ncleg.net, Buck.Newton@ncleg.net, Louis.Pate@ncleg.net, Ron.Rabin@ncleg.net, Bill.Rabon@ncleg.net, Shirley.Randleman@ncleg.net, Bob.Rucho@ncleg.net, Norman.Sanderson@ncleg.net, Dan.Soucek@ncleg.net, Jeff.Tarte@ncleg.net, Jerry.Tillman@ncleg.net, Tommy.Tucker@ncleg.net, Trudy.Wade@ncleg.net

DELIVER THIS MESSAGE

Suggested Subject: Republicans will be held responsible for failure of HB 937

Dear Speaker Tillis/President Pro Tem Phil Berger/Governor Pat McCrory/Representative/Senator:

NC gun owners have worked too hard for too long and have spent too much time and money supporting politicians claiming to be pro-Second Amendment. If HB 937, the omnibus gun bill, fails to be passed into law we will hold you responsible.

You need to make sure this bill leaves the conference committee and is signed by Gov. McCrory. We’ve had enough of the political games. HB 937 must be signed into law this year or there will be a price to be paid during the next election.

You owe this to NC gun owners who are largely responsible for your election. Do not disappoint us.

I will be following progress through Grass Roots North Carolina legislative alerts.

Respectfully,

Uncategorized

What Sheriff Bailey Didn’t Say

July 19, 2013 by 1 Comment

Mecklenburg County Sheriff Chipp Bailey is one of the North Carolina sheriffs who is determined to retain the state’s racist, Jim Crow-era pistol purchase permit system. In an interview given to WCNC-TV of Charlotte, Sheriff Bailey contends that the pistol purchase permit system would have prevented the shooters in Tucson, Virginia Tech, and Aurora from obtaining their pistols.

Mecklenburg County Sheriff Chipp Bailey said that he agrees with every law-abiding citizen’s right to own firearms, but says he wants the state to continue to allow his office the right to dispense permits, because of the NICS system does not catch all mental health issues.

“We also check our transport logs for involuntary commits and those kinds of things which wouldn’t be picked up by NICS or some other device.” Sheriff Bailey said, “I think it’s important for us to know who is being permitted for firearms or who is going out to buy firearms…until the process gets where you can really count on it, then I think the sheriff’s need to be involved with it.”

There is only one little flaw in Sheriff Bailey’s argument. Once the permit which is good for five years is issued, it can’t be revoked. It also substitutes for the NICS check. Thus, a person who based a background check up to five years ago can take their permit to a FFL, present their permit, buy a gun, and avoid the NICS check. If they have committed a felony, a misdemeanor involving domestic violence, or had been adjudicated mentally ill after being issued the permit, they could still obtain a firearm. I don’t think the fact that they would be committing a Federal felony by lying on the ATF Form 4473 would matter much to such a person.

The Charlotte Observer – Sheriff Bailey’s local paper – did an analysis on pistol purchase permits. It found more than 60 felons in Mecklenburg County alone held pistol purchase permits. A NICS check would have caught these felons when they tried to purchase a firearm.

Mecklenburg County is also lagging the state in the issuance of Concealed Handgun Permits according to the most recent data. As Sean points out here, something is a little fishy when Mecklenburg County has only seen a rise of 2.83% in new permits as compared to the statewide figure of 9.36%. Moreover, just slightly smaller Wake County has issued 4.5 times as many permits in the same time period.

I think Sheriff Bailey, despite his so-called support for the citizen’s right to own a firearm, has some explaining to do.

Uncategorized

Screwing Up HB 937

July 19, 2013 by 1 Comment

It was not bad enough that the North Carolina House didn’t concur with the Senate on the changes to HB 937 but now the House sponsor Rep. Jacqueline Schaffer (R-Mecklenburg) and House chair of the Conference Committee is proposing to make it worse. I could make snide comments about Mecklenburg County politicians such as Tillis, Schaffer, and McCrory screwing up the state for the rest of the 99 counties but I won’t.

Grass Roots North Carolina has the details below in an alert sent out late last night.


A DEAL TO PUNISH GUN OWNERS

HB 937 was making the partial repeal of the current Jim Crow-era pistol permit system look like a reality. Then, the political pressure mounted.

GRNC has learned that the partial repeal of the current, old-fashioned system is in jeopardy, and worse, the current system might become even more complicated and restrictive. The NRA has not “signed off” on the partial repeal of the old permit system, and worse, someone has convinced HB 937 sponsor, Rep. Jacqueline Michelle Schaffer, to modify the language such that NICS checks are to be required for pistols purchased with permits more than 30 days old.

There are two problems with this:

  1. The NCSA has already said that NICS checks are not adequate. So why subject law-abiding gun owners to additional pointless background checks?


  2. According to GRNC President, Paul Valone, “This action would punish innocent gun owners for the malfeasance of the NCSA, and is unacceptable!”

Speaker Tillis, Representative Schaffer and Governor McCrory are poised to bow to the NCSA pressure. This would be a major sellout of North Carolina gun owners. If political pressure pushes these politicians to punish us, GRNC may encourage gun owners to sit out the 2014 midterm elections. The Speaker, Rep. Schaffer, Gov. McCrory and all of the Republicans in Raleigh need to know that they can’t take gun owners for granted, and any anti-gun actions will not be tolerated. See below to learn what you can do to let these politicians know what you think of their proposed anti-gun deal.

IMMEDIATE ACTION REQUIRED!

PHONE SPEAKER TILLIS, REPRESENTATIVE SCHAFFER AND GOVERNOR McCRORY.
E-MAIL THE SPEAKER, REP. SCHAFFER AND THE GOVERNOR.

CONTACT INFO

Speaker Tillis: 919-733-3451

Rep. Schaffer: 919-733-5886

Governor McCrory: (919) 814-2000

Phone them and tell them that you know about their anti-gun scheme, and you won’t be taken for granted. Tell them that following through on the plan to worsen our already old-fashioned pistol permit system may hurt all Republicans in Raleigh by forcing you to consider sitting out the 2014 midterm elections.

Use the following e-mail addresses and link to deliver the message below:

Thom.Tillis@ncleg.net

Jacqueline.Schaffer@ncleg.net

E-mail the Governor using this link:

http://www.governor.state.nc.us/contact/email-pat

DELIVER THIS MESSAGE

Suggested Subject: “Don’t Punish Gun Owners”

Dear Speaker Tillis, Representative Schaffer, and Governor McCrory:

I have recently learned of a compromise being considered regarding HB 937, and I am writing to tell you that making our state’s outdated pistol permit system even worse than it already is will not help your esteem in the eyes of gun owners. Simply leaving the current Jim Crow-era system in place would be bad enough. However, what is being proposed would create a system that is even more difficult for law-abiding citizens to navigate than the current system. The new proposal would add a new thirty-day limit to permit validity, which would then require a point-of-sale NICS check. This is not acceptable.

It is the decades-long malfeasance of the NCSA and their support of a current system that has allowed the “arming felons” loophole to remain in place. Keeping this old-fashioned system, and then making it yet even more complicated and unjust is not an improvement. In fact, if this new restriction to the current permit system is added, I, and surely thousands of other gun owners in North Carolina, may sit out the 2014 midterm elections. Gun owning voters will not be taken for granted.

I strongly urge you to stand firm against the political pressure to compromise at the expense of gun owners. This is not an acceptable compromise by any stretch, and if it happens, the Republicans will be held responsible, and they will feel it at the polls.

I will be monitoring the status of this issue via Grass Roots North Carolina alerts.

Respectfully,

Uncategorized

GRNC Alert On The HB 937 Conference Committee

July 17, 2013 by 2 Comments

Grass Roots North Carolina issued an alert last night regarding the move the NC House to send HB 937 to a Conference Committee. The move, while disappointing, was not unexpected given the staunch opposition by the NC Sheriffs Association to doing away with the Jim Crow-era pistol purchase permit system. There had been rumors that Gov. Pat McCrory (R-NC) would veto the bill if that provision was not removed as a way to placate the sheriffs.

The alert from GRNC encourages gun rights supporters to contact Speaker Thom Tills (R-Mecklenburg), Sen. President Pro-Tem Phil Berger (R-Rockingham), and Gov. McCrory to demand that, with the exception of the pistol purchase permit system, nothing else be dropped from the bill.

From GRNC:

House sends bill to conference committee


As expected, the NC House today voted against concurring with Senate changes to HB 937 (“Amend Various Firearms Laws”). The bill contains provisions for concealed carry in restaurants, assemblies of people for which admission is charged, state-controlled parking lots, educational properties (provided guns are kept in locked vehicles) and much more. If passed largely intact, it will represent the largest advance in gun rights in North Carolina history.


At issue is the repeal of North Carolina’s Jim Crow-era pistol purchase permit law, which is opposed by the NC Sheriffs’ Assoc. and Governor Pat McCrory. While GRNC strongly urged that the House concur with Senate strengthening of the bill, leaving the full PP repeal intact, we remain optimistic about resolution of differences because Speaker Thom Tillis’ office has said that:

  1. Other aspects of the bill will not be weakened in committee and will, in fact, likely be strengthened in at least one respect;
  2. Although the PP repeal will not stay in entirety, in a radio interview Tillis has promised a compromise which will at least partially satisfy the concerns of all interested parties, including GRNC; and
  3. The bill will pass THIS YEAR.

Thanks to the stalwarts


First, GRNC wishes to thank the 18 stalwart gun rights supporters who voted for concurrence, even in the face of pressure to weaken the bill. They are: Representative(s): Bell, J.; Brawley, R.; Brody; Bumgardner; Catlin; Elmore; Faircloth; Ford; Hastings; Jones; Jordan; Millis; Pittman; Presnell; Shepard; Speciale; Stone; Torbett.


Conference committee members


We do NOT recommend beating on the following legislators who have been appointed to the conference committee, since they are generally strong Second Amendment supporters with excellent voting records. We are particularly heartened by the fact that the Senate Chair is Sen. Buck Newton, primary architect of the Senate improvements to HB 937. The conferees are:


House: Rep. Jacqueline Michelle Schaffer, Chair; Rep. Justin P. Burr; Rep. John Faircloth; Rep. George G. Cleveland.


Senate: Sen. E. S. (Buck) Newton, Chair, Sen. Kathy Harrington, Sen. Andrew C. Brock, Sen. Shirley B. Randleman.


IMMEDIATE ACTION REQUIRED!


CALL & EMAIL Speaker Thom Tillis, Senate President Pro Tem Phil Berger and Gov. Pat McCrory.


Contact Information


Speaker Thom Tillis, 919-733-3451,
Email: Thom.Tillis@ncleg.net


Senate President Pro Tem Phil Berger, (919) 733-5708
Email: Phil.Berger@ncleg.net


Gov. Pat McCrory, (919) 814-2000,
Email using webpage at http://www.governor.state.nc.us/contact/email-pat


DELIVER THIS MESSAGE


Suggested Subject: Keep HB 937 Strong


Dear Speaker Tillis/President Pro Tem Phil Berger/Governor Pat McCrory:


While I am disappointed that Republican leaders bowed to demands by the North Carolina Sheriffs’ Association, which seems to oppose repeal of the Jim Crow-era pistol purchase permit law entirely for reasons of power and money, I remain optimistic that leadership will deliver a strong bill to the gun-owning voters who elected them.


It goes without saying that all other aspects of House Bill 937 must remain entirely intact. Beyond that, any “compromise” worked out on the purchase permit repeal must: (1) Not impose additional burdens on gun owners, including (but not limited to) record-keeping on firearm transfers and restrictions and limitations on permits; and (2) Close the “arming felons loophole” by repealing at least the portion of the law dealing with dealer transfers.


Realizing that conferees will be acting only on the approval of leadership, I will hold you responsible for the HB 937 conference committee report. I hope to tell other gun-owning voters, in future elections, that you supported their rights. I will closely monitor this issue via Grass Roots North Carolina legislative alerts.


Respectfully,