The Columbus Dispatch is reporting that "a bill that would erase Columbus' assault-weapons ban passed the Ohio House yesterday, but Gov. Bob Taft still is poised to veto it over provisions on how people carry guns in vehicles."
From the story:
The bill, which makes a number of changes to Ohio's nearly 2-year-old law that allows residents to carry concealed handguns, would no longer permit local governments to pass gun laws that go beyond the restrictions set by state lawmakers.
Columbus officials approved an assault-weapons ban last summer. But under the House bill, cities also would be unable to ban guns from parks or other places not already designated as gun-free zones in state law.
Rep. James Aslanides, a Coshocton Republican and sponsor of the bill, said it's unreasonable to expect someone with a gun permit to be aware of various gun laws every time he or she enters a different town. People deserve to be treated the same under one consistent law, he said before the bill was passed, 76-19. It now goes to the Senate.
The article goes on to report that in this election year, it will once again be Republican Bob Taft who plans to stand in the way of common-sense reforms for law-abiding Ohioans.
The article also reports that House Speaker Jon A. Husted, R-Kettering, expressed surprise that the Democrats barely uttered a peep about the legislation.
"I guess we're all smart now that their governor candidate agrees with us on these issues," Husted told the Dispatch, referring to Democrat Ted Strickland, a gun-rights supporter.
Again, from the story:
For the bill to become law, it's Republican Taft, not the Democrats, who offers the biggest obstacle.
Just as he did during the last gun-bill debate more than two years ago, Taft continues to threaten a veto of any bill that is opposed by any major law-enforcement organization.
Current law requires that a permit holder in a vehicle either lock the gun away or carry it in a holster that is in plain sight. The State Highway Patrol, concerned about trooper safety during traffic stops, objected to allowing people to carry guns in vehicles, and the plain-sight wording was worked in as a compromise.
"We supported the compromise last time around on it, we thought that was a good compromise, and we believe that's where Ohio should be," Taft said yesterday.
Aslanides and Husted said the requirement is both unreasonable and unenforceable. The bill removes the plain-sight requirement because "it's legal fiction that can't be reasonably complied with by Ohio citizens," Aslanides said.
Sen. Steve Austria, of Beavercreek, who the Dispatch story referred to as "the point person for Senate Republicans on gun issues", is quoted as saying it's important that law-enforcement officers be able to identify whether a vehicle occupant is carrying a gun. Austria went on to say he believes there is a better alternative than the plain-sight provision.
"We will be trying to work with law enforcement to try and come up with a solution they are comfortable with," he said.
