West Virginia Citizens Defense League, Inc.

PO Box 11371 • Charleston, WV 25339-1371

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WVCDL Legislative Tracking Service (2010)

The following gun-related bills were introduced in the West Virginia Legislature during its 2010 regular session.

Passed bills are sorted by WVCDL's position and bill number. Bills that failed to pass are separately sorted by WVCDL's position and bill number and are listed separately from the passed bills.

This page was last updated at 12:15 PM, Friday, April 9, 2010.

Passed Bills

Bills WVCDL Strongly Supports

Bill

Status

HB 4521
Creating a sales tax holiday for purchases of guns and ammunition
This bill would create an annual sales tax holiday on the first weekend of October for firearms.

02/17/10 - Introduced
02/17/10 - To House Finance Committee
02/23/10 - With title amendment, do pass
02/24/10 - From House Calendar, 1st reading, placed on Special Calendar
02/24/10 - Read 1st time
02/25/10 - On 2nd reading, Special Calendar
02/25/10 - Read 2nd time
02/26/10 - On 3rd reading, Special Calendar
02/26/10 - Passed House (Roll No. 109)
02/26/10 - Title amendment adopted (Voice vote)
02/26/10 - Communicated to Senate
03/01/10 - Introduced in Senate
03/01/10 - To Senate Finance Committee
03/11/10 - Reported do pass, with title amendment
03/11/10 - Immediate consideration
03/11/10 - On 1st reading
03/11/10 - Read 1st time
03/12/10 - On 2nd reading
03/12/10 - Read 2nd time
03/12/10 - Floor Amendment Reported
03/12/10 - Point of Order
03/12/10 - Floor amendment rejected (Roll No. 37)
03/13/10 - On 3rd reading
03/13/10 - Read 3rd time
03/13/10 - Passed Senate with amended title (Roll No. 35)
03/13/10 - Senate requests House to concur
03/13/10 - House received Senate message
03/13/10 - House concurred in Senate title amendment
03/13/10 - Passed House (Roll No. 405)
03/13/10 - Communicated to Senate
03/13/10 - Completed legislative action
03/20/10 - To Governor 3/31/10 - House Journal
03/20/10 - To Governor 3/31/10 - Senate Journal
03/31/10 - To Governor 3/31/10
04/02/10 - Vetoed by Governor 4/2/10
03/20/10 - Vetoed by Governor 4/2/10 - House Journal
03/20/10 - Vetoed by Governor 4/2/10 - Senate Journal

Bills WVCDL Supports

Bill

Status

SB 515
Relating to firearms' purchases and licensing
Similar to SB 170.

02/09/10 - Introduced
02/09/10 - To Senate Judiciary Committee
02/19/10 - Committee substitute reported
02/22/10 - On 1st reading
02/22/10 - Read 1st time
02/23/10 - On 2nd reading
02/23/10 - Read 2nd time
02/24/10 - On 3rd reading
02/24/10 - Read 3rd time
02/24/10 - Passed Senate (Roll No. 14)
02/24/10 - Ordered to House
02/25/10 - Introduced in House
02/25/10 - To House Judiciary Committee
03/10/10 - With amendment, do pass
03/10/10 - Immediate consideration
03/10/10 - Read 1st time
03/11/10 - From House Calendar, 2nd reading, placed on Special Calendar
03/11/10 - Read 2nd time
03/12/10 - On 3rd reading with right to amend, Special Calendar
03/12/10 - Amendment to committee amendment adopted (voice vote)
03/12/10 - Committee amendment adopted (Voice vote)
03/12/10 - Read 3rd time
03/12/10 - Passed House (Roll No. 308)
03/12/10 - Title amendment adopted (Voice vote)
03/12/10 - Communicated to Senate
03/13/10 - Senate concurred in House amendment and passed bill (Roll No. 60)
03/13/10 - Communicated to House
03/13/10 - Completed legislative action
04/01/10 - To Governor 4/1/10
03/20/10 - To Governor 4/1/10 - Senate Journal
03/20/10 - To Governor 4/1/10 - House Journal
04/06/10 - Vetoed by Governor 4/6/10
03/20/10 - Vetoed by Governor 4/6/10 - Senate Journal
03/20/10 - Vetoed by Governor 4/6/10 - House Journal

Bill	Status
Bills on which WVCDL is Neutral

Bill	Status
Bills WVCDL Opposes

Bill	Status
Bills WVCDL Strongly Opposes

Failed Bills

The following bills failed to pass during the 2010 regular session of the West Virginia Legislature:

Bill	Status
Bills WVCDL Strongly Supported
HB 4265 Prohibiting the taking of lawfully possessed arms and ammunition during a declared state of emergency or riot This bill prohibits the taking of lawfully possessed arms and ammunition during a declared state of emergency or riot. This is a WVCDL bill.	02/02/10 - Introduced 02/02/10 - To House Judiciary Committee
HB 4280 Relating to the regulation of carrying firearms -- Hunting law cleanup This bill clarifies the applicability of certain hunting regulations to the carrying of firearms. This bill repeals limitations on how handguns may be carried in vehicles or in wooded areas or while bowhunting and clarifies miscellaneous other firearm regulations to only apply to rifles and shotguns. This bill also exempts individuals licensed or otherwise authorized to carry concealed weapons from certain regulations on the manner in which other firearms may be carried or transported in wooded areas or vehicles. This is a WVCDL bill.	02/02/10 - Introduced 02/02/10 - To House Natural Resources Committee, then House Judiciary Committee
HB 4305 Relating to limitations upon the keeping and bearing of arms -- Preemption reform This bill reforms the state preemption of firearm regulations and establishes uniform signage requirement for all places, both public and private property, where the possession or carrying of weapons has been prohibited. This is a WVCDL bill.	02/02/10 - Introduced 02/02/10 - To House Judiciary Committee
HB 4325 Right to Carry -- No License Required This bill repeals the requirement of a license to carry concealed weapons, partially strengthens preemption, contains provisions similar to HB 4280 for cleaning up confusing and contradictory hunting laws regulating handguns, restores firearm rights to individuals who have received a pardon, expungement, or certain forms of relief from disabilities for a disqualifying crime, and maintains optional concealed weapon licenses for West Virginians to be able to carry in other states via reciprocity. This is a WVCDL bill.	02/03/10 - Introduced 02/03/10 - To House Natural Resources Committee, then House Judiciary Committee

SB 164 State Capitol Carry Ban Repeal Repeals the statute prohibiting the possession of deadly weapons on the State Capitol grounds and modifies the statute prohibiting weapons in courthouses to permit carrying inside all parts of the State Capitol building not occupied by the Supreme Court of Appeals and court offices. This is a WVCDL bill.	01/13/10 - Introduced 01/13/10 - To Senate Judiciary Committee
SB 170 Prohibiting third-party purchase of firearm/Anti-Bloomberg Bill Prohibits the purchase of firearms from licensed firearm dealers with the intent of reselling to a person prohibited from possessing firearms or with the intent of unlawfully transferring the firearm across state lines. This bill mirrors federal law and existing Virginia state laws, including a similar bill enacted in 2007 by the Virginia General Assembly. This bill has been designed to provide state level jurisdiction in West Virginia to prosecute straw purchasers and, like Virginia's 2007 law, is intended to block the unlawful efforts of New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg to dispatch investigators to gun dealers in gun owner-friendly states in his efforts to snare gun dealers in costly litigation with the hopes of acquiring access to private records of legal gun purchases and indirectly imposing New York-style gun control via litigation. This is a WVCDL bill.	01/13/10 - Introduced 01/13/10 - To Senate Judiciary Committee
SCR 20 Reasserting West Virginia's sovereignty under Tenth Amendment	02/05/10 - Filed for introduction 02/05/10 - Introduced in Senate 02/08/10 - On Unfinished Business 02/08/10 - To Senate Judiciary Committee

Bill	Status
Bills WVCDL Supported
HB 2866 Allowing a license to carry deadly weapons to remain valid until the applicant receives notice the application for renewal has been issued or denied This bill provides an indefinite extension of a concealed handgun license for which a renewal application was filed prior to its expiration date and which is pending before the sheriff.	01/13/10 - Introduced 01/13/10 - To House Judiciary Committee
HB 4014 Requiring qualifying law-enforcement officers employed by a West Virginia law-enforcement agency to receive certification to carry a concealed firearm nationwide. This bill is an older version of a WVCDL-authored bill to establish the necessary certification programs for active and retired law-enforcement officers to have nationwide concealed carry privileges under the federal Law Enforcement Officers Safety Act of 2004.	01/13/10 - Introduced 01/13/10 - To House Judiciary Committee
HB 4170 Uniform Collateral Consequences of Conviction Act This bill establishes a mechanism to ensure that all criminal defendants are properly informed of all potential consequences of a conviction, including a potential loss of firearm rights. This bill reduces the risk that any person will unknowingly forfeit his or her rights by pleading guilty to any crime or mounting a less-than-vigorous defense to a criminal charge.	01/25/10 - Introduced 01/25/10 - To House Judiciary Committee

SB 340 Uniform Collateral Consequences of Conviction Act Same as HB 4170	01/25/10 - Introduced 01/25/10 - To Senate Judiciary Committee

Bill	Status
Bills on which WVCDL was Neutral
HB 2075 Allow family court judges to carry concealed weapons without a license This bill grants family court judges the same privilege as the law already grants to circuit court judges.	01/13/10 - Introduced 01/13/10 - To House Judiciary Committee
HB 2298 Allow mental hygiene commissioners to carry concealed weapons without a license Authorizes mental hygiene commissioners to carry concealed weapons without a license.	01/13/10 - Introduced 01/13/10 - To House Judiciary Committee
HB 2428 Permitting magistrates to carry concealed handguns without a permit This bill grants magistrates the same privilege as the law already grants to circuit court judges.	01/13/10 - Introduced 01/13/10 - To House Judiciary Committee
HB 4316 West Virginia Firearms Freedom Act This bill purports to declare firearms and firearm accessories manufactured entirely within West Virginia and which never cross a state line from federal regulation. While WVCDL supports appropriate efforts to reaffirm the constitutional rights of West Virginians and their Legislature against an overreaching federal government (see our strong support for SCR 20 above), we are very concerned this legislation will be of little effect due to the current body of case law from the U.S. Supreme Court interpreting the limits of Congress’s Commerce Clause powers (see Ed Stone, Firearms Freedom Act promises something politicians are not able to deliver, Atlanta Gun Rights Examiner, Jan. 23, 2010) and will give some individuals a false impression about the applicability of federal law. Most importantly, the minimal effect this bill would have in reality is overshadowed by the more pressing needs we have to reform state gun laws and this bill does nothing to advance those causes. Therefore, WVCDL has decided to be neutral on this bill and focus our efforts on more meaningful legislation.	02/02/10 - Introduced 02/02/10 - To House Judiciary Committee
HCR 113 Requesting a study of the sale, licensing and use of firearms This resolution requests the Joint Committee on Government and Finance study state gun laws in general and prepare a report and proposed legislation before the 2011 legislative session	03/10/10 - Originating in House Judiciary 03/10/10 - Be adopted, but first to Rules 03/10/10 - To House Rules Committee

SB 555 West Virginia Firearms Freedom Act Same as HB 4316	02/12/10 - Introduced 02/12/10 - To Senate Judiciary Committee

Bills WVCDL Opposed

Bill

Status

HB 2507
Relating to the discharging of firearms within a certain distance of a dwelling house
This bill authorizes the Director of the Division of Natural Resources to issue individual permits to allow a person to discharge a firearm within 500 feet of a house under certain conditions.
WVCDL believes that the conditions of this bill are too restrictive. We have proposed an alternative bill that would provide backyard target shooters a more effective means to legally discharge firearms within the vicinity of their own homes or, with prior written permission, those of a neighbor.

01/13/10 - Introduced
01/13/10 - To House Natural Resources Committee, then House Judiciary Committee

Bill	Status
Bills WVCDL Strongly Opposed
HB 2299 One handgun per month purchase limit This bill would prohibit any private citizen from purchasing more than one handgun in any 30-day period. This bill includes not only purchases from dealers but also private sales. This bill is a perennial proposal of one of the few honest anti-gun members of the Legislature, Delegate John Doyle, D-Jefferson. Another legislative victory for West Virginia gun owners!	01/13/10 - Introduced 01/13/10 - To House Judiciary Committee
HB 4422 Clarifying that law-enforcement may remove weapons possessed after service or notice of a protective order but before an actual hearing This bill immediately prohibits a person from possessing firearms and authorizes the immediate confiscation of firearms upon the issuance of any type of domestic violence protective order, before that person has had an opportunity for a hearing in court in which he or she can present his/her side of the case and defend against false allegations. This bill violates a person's right to due process and will result in lying, manipulative individuals abusing the system to have a person's guns taken away by imposing firearm disabilities before that person has his or her day in court. The current law is modeled on federal law (18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(8)), which while imperfect, at least gives everyone their day in court before a protective order results in firearm disabilities. For more info, see WVCDL's February 10, 2010, legislative update. Another legislative victory for West Virginia gun owners!	02/10/10 - Introduced 02/10/10 - To House Judiciary Committee

SB 516 Creating public shooting ranges permits This bill would require a person to obtain a permit to use public shooting ranges owned and operated by the Division of Natural Resources. Permits would be valid for 1 year and cost $50 for residents and $150 for nonresidents. Licensed hunters and individuals authorized to hunt without a license are exempted. Although this bill is intended to serve the laudable purpose of providing funding to create additional public shooting ranges and maintain and improve existing public shooting ranges, this bill's exorbitant permitting fees will reduce the use of public shooting ranges and not raise the funds anticipated or required to fulfill this bill's intent. For more info, see WVCDL's February 11, 2010, legislative update or the discussion of this bill on the WVCDL Forums. Another legislative victory for West Virginia gun owners!	02/09/10 - Introduced 02/09/10 - To Senate Natural Resources Committee, then Senate Finance Committee