Take Action on Pro-Gun Bills to be Heard by the Louisiana House!

I am happy to report that “Gun Day” at the Louisiana Capitol was a good day for our Second Amendment rights!

On Tuesday, April 12, the House Committee on the Administration of Criminal Justice passed two major pro-gun bills in Constitutional Carry bill HB37 by Rep. Danny McCormick, and the Louisiana Firearm Protection Act HB43 by Rep. Larry Frieman.

These bills are currently on the House Floor and are scheduled for a vote tomorrow, Wednesday, April 20th.

Please take action as soon as you can to urge your State Representative to VOTE YES on these pro-gun bills!

Constitutional Carry bill HB37, as originally introduced, would restore the right of law-abiding gun owners 18 years and older to carry a concealed handgun in the state of Louisiana without a permit in those same places an individual can Open Carry. However, prior to passage, HB37 was amended, raising the age requirement from 18 to 21. (The amendment to raise the age requirement passed by a vote of 8-5, while the final passage vote was 10-3. Here is the report showing how each committee member voted.)

Now, HB37 as amended would restore the right of law-abiding gun owners 21 years and older to carry a concealed handgun in the state of Louisiana without a permit in those same places an individual can Open Carry.

The Louisiana Firearm Protection Act HB43 would make Louisiana a Second Amendment Sanctuary State, prohibiting the state, and any governing authorities within the state, from enforcing, or assisting in enforcing, a federal act, regulation, executive order, etc. enacted after January 1, 2022, that infringes on a citizen’s right to keep and bear arms. (HB43 was passed by a vote of 10-1.

In addition to the above bills, the committee also took up pro-gun bills HB483 and HB464, and anti-gun bill HB949.

HB483 by Rep. Travis Johnson shortens the time period before a person with a felony conviction is allowed to possess a firearm, carry a concealed weapon, or apply for a concealed handgun permit from 10 years to five years. This bill was voluntarily deferred by the author to work on some of the language and is scheduled to be heard April 19^th. (See our previous alert.)

HB464 by Rep. Alan Seabaugh provides for greater protection of the Second Amendment rights of individuals accused of domestic violence in civil cases. Specifically, this bill provides more due process protection and a higher burden of proof for issuing a permanent injunction or protective order that requires a firearm transfer. The bill saw considerable opposition and failed to pass out of committee by a vote of 5-6.

HB949 by Rep. Tammy Phelps. Current law provides that a person less than 18 years of age may not knowingly possess a handgun on their person. This bill would remove the requirement that the handgun be possessed on the person to be violating the law. The concerns with this bill are that a person under the age of 18 could be arrested for illegal possession of a firearm simply for being in a vehicle with a handgun that they did not even know was there. Based on these concerns, the bill was voluntarily deferred by the author in order to work on its’ language.

Finally, while the House Committee was debating the above bills, Senate Judiciary C Committee was putting a stop to Sen. Gary Carter’s unconstitutional gun confiscation “red flag” bill.

SB327 authorizes a district attorney or assistant district attorney to petition the court for a warrant for the search and seizure of any firearm from any person when the petitioner has probable cause to believe the person poses a risk of imminent personal injury to himself or to another person.  Much like Sen. Carter’s previous attempts, this proposed “red flag” law does not provide due process for the seizure of firearms and violates the Second Amendment to the Constitution of the United States and Article 1, Section 11, of the Louisiana Constitution.  With a 4-1 vote, the Judiciary C Committee voted overwhelmingly to stop Sen. Carter’s gun confiscation “red flag” bill in its tracks!

I would like to thank everyone who sent emails, made calls, and were present at the hearing. The hearing room was overflowing with pro-gun patriots and the committee members took notice!

But we need to make sure we keep this momentum going.

As I stated above, Constitutional Carry and the Louisiana Firearms Protection Act are scheduled to be voted on by the House tomorrow afternoon, April, 20th!

Please take action and let your State Representative know that we expect them to support and defend the right of law abiding Louisianans to keep and bear arms!

If you can, call your State Representative and ask that they vote YES on HB595, HB118, and HB124. (If you don’t know who your State Representative is, use our Legislator Lookup tool to look them up.)