Idaho town: Proposed ordinance asks each household to have a firearm

Last week, Boise's Fox 12 reported that a small Idaho town is contemplating an idea similar to Kennesaw, GA's successful 1980's crime-prevention technique. It's called the Civil Emergencies Ordinance, and if city council member Steve Jett has his way, each head of household that can legally own a gun, will. Along with that they're encouraged to have ammunition and appropriate training.

"I think the city council is hoping it will happen and that it will be a deterrent to crime as the city and region increases in population," said Belt.

The proposed ordinance is modeled after a similar plan that went into place in 1982 in Kennesaw, Ga. In that instance there was a dramatic decrease in criminal activity. Although crime isn't a huge problem for residents of Greenleaf, the growth in neighboring counties leads them to believe they too are in for some changes.

"There's not a lot of crime here, but I think it's coming, it's getting worse everyday," said Art Bailey, owner of the Greenleaf Store.

While the plan does encourages firearm ownership, the ordinance goes beyond that.

"The largest part itself deals with emergency capabilities," said Belt.

The plan will establish an emergency response plan, and promote its citizen response teams and neighborhood watch volunteer groups, a proactive approach to keep the crime rate to a minimum. So how have residents responded? According to almost everyone we spoke to, they already owned a gun or multiple guns, so this would have no effect on them either way.

In November, the council will decide whether or not to adopt the ordinance.