Members of the Senate Judiciary Committee listened to testimony for nearly three hours Wednesday before delaying action on HB 859 that would legalize guns on college campuses.
Thirty-nine people testified both in favor of and against State Rep. Rick Jasperse’s “Campus Safety Act” that would allow anyone 21 or older with a carry license to possess a gun anywhere on a public college or university campus, except for inside dormitories, fraternities and sorority houses, and at athletic events. The proposed bill, which passed the House by a convincing 113-59 margin, also requires that those weapons be concealed.
Members of the committee also had a lot of questions concerning the proposed legislation, including whether or not weapons would be allowed at music concerts held on campus. Committee members also questioned the procedure for colleges handling disciplinary hearings involved incidents on college campuses.
If the bill is approved by the Senate, Georgia would become the 10th state to adopt a version of the campus carry law. Other states include: Arkansas, Kansas, Mississippi, Oregon, Colorado, Texas, Idaho, Wisconsin and Utah.
“House Bill 859 is simply providing responsible Georgians, who have gone through the licensure process to obtain a weapons carry permit, the ability to carry their weapon in certain places on their college campuses,” Jasperse said in a prepared press release. “In today’s world, it’s a must.”
The Board of Regents has voiced strong opposition to the bill, and has previously blocked other attempts at similar legislation. In 2014, the House voted to legalize campus carry under the “Guns Everywhere Bill, but the language allowing concealed weapons on campuses was pulled out by the Senate.
The Senate committee is expected to meet next week to vote on the bill.
