Senate committee schedules hearing for HB 203 (Concealed Carry & Self-Defense Law Reform), other pro-gun bills

Chairman Bill Coley has announced that the Senate Civil Justice Committee will be hearing sponsor testimony on Representative Terry Johnson's (R-McDermott) HB 203 next Wednesday, November 12 at 9:45 a.m. in the Finance Hearing Room. This will be the first hearing for this important bill.

Coley has also scheduled fourth hearings for Rep. Cheryl Grossman's (R-Grove City) HB 234 (Allow Noise Suppressors While Hunting) and SB 338, Sen. Joe Uecker's (R-Miami Township) Concealed Carry Law Reform Bill.

As passed by the House, HB 203, seeks to make many improvements to Ohio's concealed carry laws.

The bill would strengthen the background checks required to obtain an Ohio Concealed Handgun License (CHL). Under the bill, Ohio CHL applicants would need to pass a NICS-compliant background check (National Instant Check System), making it compatible with more states. This improvement will also help prevent people with mental health disqualifiers who have been entered into the federal database from obtaining a CHL.

The bill would also move Ohio to an automatic reciprocity system, relieving the Attorney General from the requirement to sign agreements with every state for reciprocity. The Attorney General would still be permitted to sign agreements if needed, but the bill seeks to streamline the process and open up agreements with states such as Indiana, Pennsylvania, and Georgia with which Ohio does not currently have agreements.

"Reciprocity remains a critical issue for people with a CHL," said Jim Irvine, President of Buckeye Firearms Association. "Background checks have been a hot topic since the Newtown killings, and ours has some issues that should be addressed. This bill makes sure people with disqualifying offenses are not issued CHL's. This is something everyone should be happy about."

The bill would also update the requirements and disqualifications to obtain an CHL. Currently there are different standards to possess a gun under federal and state law, and different still to obtain a CHL. HB 203 harmonizes Ohio law with federal law so that someone who is prohibited under federal law from possessing a firearm will not be issued a CHL. Ohio would also be able to issue licenses to out-of-state residents, something many other states already do.

Under the bill, required topics for Ohio CHL training would remain the same, but the arbitrary mandate that requires instructors to spend 12 hours covering those topics would be reduced to four hours. Most experienced instructors agree that the same training can be covered in less time.

"Ohio has one of the nation's most egregious CHL training requirements," said Irvine. "Other states have seen that more people get training when the time requirement is reduced. We are strong advocates of training and want to see more people become trained in the safe use of firearms. But padding the classes to fill 12 hours when the same information can be effectively covered in less time makes no sense.

"People are exhausted at the end of a long 12-hour day or at the end of two 6-hour days. They lose their concentration and stop learning at some point. By covering the same material in less time, we think applicants will learn and retain more information."

Finally, HB 203 seeks to modify the state's self-defense law. Current law specifically states that a person has no duty to retreat before using deadly force if that person is in his or her own home or automobile. HB 203 would expand that to anyplace that a person lawfully has the right to be.

"The law should not impose specific 'duties' on people whose lives are in jeopardy," observed Sean Maloney, a Cincinnati-area attorney specializing in self defense and firearm law. "It should protect the innocent and their right to defend their own life from criminal attack. The bill would not otherwise change the threshold to legally use lethal force in defending one's life."

HB 203 is a collection of common-sense firearms law reforms. It also corrects problems with our current background checks and brings Ohio laws more in line with federal laws. It continues Ohio on a path to improving our laws by making life easier for the law-abiding gun owner.

If it is not passed and sent to the Governor, HB 203 and many other pro-gun bills that are pending will die at the end of December.

If you want to see the General Assembly act to improve gun rights in ways that are already enjoyed by the majority of other states, call your Representative and Senator NOW and tell them you expect pro-gun legislation to move in Ohio BEFORE THE END OF THE YEAR. They asked for your vote on Tuesday. Tell them we want their votes too.

Chad D. Baus is the Buckeye Firearms Association Secretary, BFA PAC Vice Chairman, and an NRA-certified firearms instructor. He is the editor of BuckeyeFirearms.org, which received the Outdoor Writers of Ohio 2013 Supporting Member Award for Best Website.