HB495 (Reciprocity & Concealed Carry Modernization) passed by House committee; Floor vote scheduled for TODAY!

HB495, a bill introduced by Representative Terry Johnson (R-McDermott) to reform Ohio concealed carry law to protect the rights of law-abiding gun owners and continue a trend toward making Ohio law similar to other states, has been passed by the House Committee on State Government and Elections.

The vote count was a straight party-line vote, with 12 Republicans voting for the bill, and all nine Democrats voting against it. It is frustrating that all Democrats on the committee voted against restoring your rights to a level that is standard in other states. [Voting yea were Republican Reps. Maag, Henne, Buchy, Combs, Damschroder, Dovilla, Gardner, Grossman, Huffman, Sprague, Terhar, and Young. (Reps. Blessing and J. Adams were unavailable). Voting nay were Democrat Reps. Gerberry, Celeste, Clyde, Fedor, Letson, Lundy, Patmon, Stinziano, and Sykes.]

Before the vote, the committee heard testimony from Buckeye Firearms Assoc. Chairman Jim Irvine and attorney/ author Scott Kappas, as well as a number of other proponents.

An amendment proposed by the Buckeye State Sheriff's Association (BSSA) was reviewed and accepted by the committee. The provision allows sheriffs to use proceeds from CHL applications to provide ammunition for CHL classes administered by the sheriff.

Speaker William Batchelder (R-Medina) has scheduled a floor vote for later today, pending the committee's final report.

Please call your state representative NOW and ask them to vote YEA on HB495! For contact information or help identifying your state representative, please click here.

Media Coverage:
Training rule may be eased for those renewing concealed-carry permits

"This isn't ground-shaking," said Linda Walker, the central Ohio chairwoman for the Buckeye Firearms Association. "We're cleaning up legislation."

...Yesterday, pro-gun groups such as the National Rifle Association and the Buckeye Firearms Association gave testimony in support of the bill.