4 Ohio Pro-Gun Bills (and 1 Anti-Gun Bill) to Watch

At midnight on December 31, 2020, the 133rd Ohio General Assembly ended. All bills not passed at that time died. Immediately, the 134th General Assembly began, launching a new 2-year period to change the laws of the state.

Over the last two weeks, several gun-related bills have been introduced:

HB 12 - ENFORCE CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHTS (Sponsor: Diane V. Grendell) To provide for a writ of mandamus or prohibition to enforce a person's constitutional right against a chief administrative officer or elected executive official whose duty is to uphold the Ohio and United States Constitutions.

HB 62 - DESIGNATE OHIO A SECOND AMENDMENT SANCTUARY (Sponsors: Mike Loychik, Diane V. Grendell) To designate the State of Ohio as a Second Amendment Sanctuary State and to name this act the Ohio Second Amendment Safe Haven Act.

HB 89 - REPEAL THE DUTY TO "PROMPTLY" INFORM (Sponsor: Scott Wiggam) To modify the requirement that a concealed handgun licensee must notify a law enforcement officer that the licensee is authorized to carry a concealed handgun and is carrying a concealed handgun when stopped.

HB 99 - EXEMPT ARMED SCHOOL PERSONNEL FROM POLICE TRAINING (Sponsor: Thomas Hall) To expressly exempt persons authorized to go armed within a school safety zone from a requirement to complete extensive peace officer basic training.

In addition to these pro-gun, pro-liberty bills, there is another bill to watch:

HB 38 - REQUIRE DUTY TO RETREAT (Sponsors: Thomas West, Adam C. Miller) To repeal Senate Bill 175, passed last session, and bring back the duty to retreat in Ohio.

A whopping 30 co-sponsors support this bill seeking to undo our victory from the last legislative session and, once again, infringe on your fundamental right of self-defense by bringing back the nonsensical and onerous "duty to retreat."

Despite the overwhelming number of co-sponsors and the obvious disdain for the rights of the law-abiding, we think it is unlikely that this bill will go anywhere. Most likely, it will simply be used as a club to attack Republicans, including the Governor who signed it into law, and raise funds for the next round of elections coming up in 2022.

This new General Assembly is young, so you can look forward to more bills in the near future.

Note that Buckeye Firearms Association maintains a list of bills we support or oppose which you can refer to at any time. Each listed bill links to the Ohio Legislature website, which provides the text of the bill, supporting documents, status, committee votes and a record of all activity to date, including hearings and testimony.

In addition, BFA will keep you up-to-date on legislation with articles on this website, information in our free weekly newsletter, and discussions on our brand new podcast, Keep and Bear Radio.

Dean Rieck is Executive Director of Buckeye Firearms Association, a former competitive shooter, NRA Patron Member, #1 NRA Recruiter for 2013, business owner and partner with Second Call Defense.