Virginia Gun Owners Forum - VGOF

This information was compiled by Virginia Shooting Sports Association (VSSA). My personal thanks to VSSA for everything they do - if you want to join, look for the VSSA logo in the left menu below the VCDL logo.

First is SB 323
http://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604 ... +sum+SB323
Senator Bill Carrico's bill to repeal Virginia's Handgun Rationing law. The vote was 8-7 on the GOP-controlled committee, with Sen. John S. Edwards, D-Roanoke, voting for passage with seven Republicans.

Please contact the following Senators and thank them for their vote in favor or your rights:

Edwards, http://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?121+mbr+S45
Obenshain, http://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?121+mbr+S68
McDougle, http://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?121+mbr+S69
Stuart, http://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?121+mbr+S78
Vogel, http://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?121+mbr+S79
Stanley, http://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?121+mbr+S82
Reeves, http://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?121+mbr+S88
Garrett http://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?121+mbr+S87

Also reported out of committee was SB 4
http://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?121+sum+SB4
Senator Stuart's Castle Doctrine bill. It was reported on a party line vote of 8-7, with Senator Norment being absent and the GOP members casting a yea vote for him. It remains to be seen if Senator Norment actually supports the bill or whether he will re-refer it back to committee when it gets to the floor.

Please contact the following Senators and thank them for their vote in favor of your right to self-defense:

Norment (Chairman), http://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?121+mbr+S26
Obenshain, http://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?121+mbr+S68
McDougle, http://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?121+mbr+S69
Stuart, http://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?121+mbr+S78
Vogel, http://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?121+mbr+S79
Stanley, http://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?121+mbr+S82
Reeves, http://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?121+mbr+S88
Garrett http://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?121+mbr+S87

Also passed by the committee was SB 67
http://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604 ... 053+SB0067,
Senator Stanley's bill to remove the option for localities to require fingerprints for concealed handgun permit applications. A substitute bill passed the committee.

Voting with gun owners were:

Edwards, http://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?121+mbr+S45
Obenshain, http://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?121+mbr+S68
McDougle, http://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?121+mbr+S69
Stuart, http://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?121+mbr+S78
Vogel, http://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?121+mbr+S79
Stanley, http://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?121+mbr+S82
Reeves, http://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?121+mbr+S88
Garrett http://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?121+mbr+S87

Please contact your senator now and urge them to support SB 323 and SB 4, and SB 67. All three bills will be on the floor for a final vote on Friday or Monday.
VSSA will keep you posted before the final vote is scheduled.

Additionally, a number of bills are scheduled to be heard Thursday evening in House Militia, Police and Public Safety Subcommittee #1. Please contact members
of this Subcommittee and respectfully request that they oppose HB 364 and HB 458 and support HB 20, HB 22, HB 26, HB 375 and HB 940.
http://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604 ... sub+H15001

Bills to be considered in the subcommittee Thursday:

Anti-Gun Legislation:

House Bill 364
http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504 ... +sum+HB364
would prohibit the private sales of firearms at gun shows by requiring that all sales conducted at a gun show go through a federally licensed dealer. Make no mistake, if passed, supporters of this legislation will soon be calling for a ban on all private sales in Virginia.

House Bill 458
http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504 ... +sum+HB458
seeks to weaken Virginia's preemption law by allowing localities to adopt an ordinance that prohibits firearms, ammunition, or components, or a combination thereof, in libraries owned or operated by the locality.

Pro-Gun Legislation:

House Bill 20
http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504 ... 1+sum+HB20
would update Virginia's Emergency Powers doctrine by adding lawful carrying and transportation to the list of actions that cannot be prohibited during a declaration of emergency.

House Bill 22
http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504 ... 1+sum+HB22
would establish that no locality or entity may participate in compensated consfiscation schemes (gun "buyback") where individuals are given anything of value or money in exchange for surrendering a firearm to the locality unless the governing body first passes an ordinance authorizing the gun "buyback." This legislation also requires that any locality holding gun "buybacks" sell the firearms to a federally licensed dealer "or be disposed of in any appropriate manner" if they could not be sold.

House Bill 26
http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504 ... 1+sum+HB26
would allow a court to waive a $25 dollar fine upon presentation of the permit to the court, if a person fails to display his concealed handgun permit when requested by a law enforcement officer.

House Bill 375
http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504 ... +sum+HB375
would prohibit localities from adopting any workplace rule that prevents an employee from storing a lawfully possessed firearm and ammunition in his locked motor vehicle.
The firearm must be in a secured container or compartment in the vehicle.

House Bill 940
http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504 ... +sum+HB940
repeals Virginia's handgun rationing which prohibits the purchase of more than one handgun in a thirty-day period.

Update from Virginia Gun Owners Coalition (VGOC)

Dear Gun Owner,
GOOD NEWS!

Castle Doctrine Passed out of Courts of Justice 8-7.

The pro-gun question has always been, "Does existing Virginia Case Law better protect gun owners?"

Even if the answer is yes, I argued to the committee that they should fix the language to make it equal to case law and that it is important for the legislature to send a clear message that you and I can defend ourselves in our homes without retreating as long as we do not provoke the incident and we have a reasonable fear of the intruder.

Repeal of buying one gun-a-month (HB940) passed out of Courts of Justice 8 -6.

BAD NEWS:

Senators Stuart and Reeves turned on gun owners and supported SB 554, Senator Favola's "Spank Your Kid Lose Your Gun Rights" bill. Because of them it passed 9-6. Call these senators and tell them not to disarm gun owners without the due process of a day in court.

I have reason to believe with the right pressure they may change their vote.

Call Reeves at 804 698 7517
Call Stuart at 804 698 7528

CRITICAL ACTION:

Delegate Mark Cole is a committee chairman which means that he is a serves at the pleasure of the Speaker of the House.

Mark is a master at doing nothing while appearing to do something.

He has a history of sponsoring good legislation that goes no where when the speaker orders the bill killed.

He refuses to use the rules like Bob Marshall does to force a vote.

Right now he is sponsoring Constitutional Carry, HB 139.

Call Mr. Cole at 804 698 1088 and tell him to use the rules to force a vote on HB 139 if the Speaker sends Constitutional Carry to an anti-gun sub-committee of 5 to kill it.

Please ACT NOW.

Click here to DONATE to keep VGOC in the fight!

For Liberty
Mike McHugh
President, VGOC

VA-ALERT: Legislative Update! Action Items 1/25/12
Not yet a VCDL member? Join VCDL at: http://www.vcdl.org/join.html
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VCDL's meeting schedule: http://www.vcdl.org/meetings.html
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Abbreviations used in VA-ALERT: http://www.vcdl.org/help/abbr.html
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1. LEGISLATIVE UPDATE
2. URGENT ACTION ITEMS!


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1. LEGISLATIVE UPDATE
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Today the Senate Courts of Justice Committee heard a bunch of gun bills and some important ones, like the repeal of One Handgun a Month and repeal of Fingerprinting for CHP applicants, passed out of committee. Unfortunately, a few bad bills passed out, too, and a few good bills were moved to next year:

SB 4, Senator Stuart, Castle Doctrine - Passed out of committee by 8 to 7!
SB 64, Senator Stanley, Castle Doctrine - Rolled into SB 4, above.
SB 67, Senator Stanley, removes option for localities to fingerprint first time CHP applicants - Passed out of committee by 8 to 6!
SB 224, Senator Herring, makes it easier to disarm someone for LIFE who is convicted of MISDEMEANOR domestic violence - Passed out of committee. We will have to kill this bill on the Floor.
SB 323, Senator Carrico, repeals One Handgun a Month - Passed out of committee by 8 to 6!
SB 324, Senator Carrico, state agency preemption - Carried over to next year
SB 379, Senator McEachin, makes private firearm sales illegal - passed by for the day.
SB 429, Senator Ruff, streamlines the Virginia form used for purchasing firearms - passed by for the day.
SB 554, Senator Favola, disarms someone with an emergency protection order without due process - Passed out of committee 9 to 6. We will have to kill this bill on the Floor.
SB 563, Senator Ruff, cleans up some minor issues in the concealed weapon code - Passed by for the day.
SB 612, Senator Black, moves long gun to the federal NICS system from the Virginia Instant Check system to improve the amount of time needed to run background checks - Carried over to next year.
SB 648, Senator McEachin, adds yet another penalty to a gun owner who is in possession of a gun while intoxicated - passed by for the day
SB 670, Senator Garrett, removes option for localities to fingerprint first time CHP applicants - Rolled into HB 67, above


7 GUN BILLS TO BE HEARD TOMORROW, Thursday, JANUARY 26!

Tomorrow, Thursday, January 26, at 5 PM in the 4th Floor West Conference Room in the General Assembly, the House Militia, Police, and Public Safety subcommittee #1 is going to hear several gun bills and I will be there to speak on them. If you can make it to the committee hearing to show support (and put on a "Guns Save Lives" sticker), that would be great!

HB 20, Delegate Wilt, protects the right of citizens to carry and transport firearms during a declared emergency (VCDL Strongly Supports)
HB 22, Delegate Cole, requires localities to try to sell guns they are in possession of instead of just destroying them (VCDL Strongly Supports)
HB 26, Delegate Cole, provides a $25 civil fine for failure to produce a CHP if demanded by a law enforcement officer (VCDL Strongly Supports)
HB 364, Delegate McClellan, perennial "gun show loophole" bill (VCDL Strongly Opposes)
HB 375, Delegate Pogge, allows local government employees to be able to store their guns in their personal vehicles while at work (VCDL Strongly Supports)
HB 458, Delegate BaCote, allows localities to ban guns in libraries (VCDL Strongly Opposes)
HB 940, Delegate Lingamfelter, repeals Virginia's One Handgun a Month law (VCDL Strongly Supports)


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2. URGENT ACTION ITEMS!
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Here are a bunch of automatic emails that you need to send ASAP in support of key bills that are on the move. Click on the link below each bill to send a message (that you can customize if you wish) to your Delegate. The system figures out who your legislator is based on your address and zip code.


HOUSE BILLS

Support for pro-gun bills (above), HB 20, HB 22, HB 26, HB 940:

http://tinyurl.com/6mhstjr



Support for pro-gun bill to allow employees of localities to store guns in their private vehicles while at work:

http://tinyurl.com/78z6qor

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Opposition to anti-gun bills (above), HB 364 and HB 458:

http://tinyurl.com/7bh2fgg


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VA-ALERT is a project of the Virginia Citizens Defense League, Inc.
(VCDL). VCDL is an all-volunteer, non-partisan grassroots organization
dedicated to defending the human rights of all Virginians. The Right to
Keep and Bear Arms is a fundamental human right.