WVCDL Bills
Please note: the bills on this
page were updated at 1:50 PM, Tuesday, January 20, 2009. If you
have previously viewed or downloaded one of these files, please obtain
the new version.
The WVCDL is seeking to enact the
following bills during the 2009 session of the West Virginia
legislature:
- Update and
clarify
the concealed weapon licensing law.
Since its initial enactment in 1989 (20 years ago), West Virginia's
concealed carry licensing law has undergone few revisions. This bill
attempts to perform 20 years of cumulative maintenance at once. This
bill makes wide-ranging improvements in the concealed carry law,
including:
- Improve reciprocity:
This bill fully
incorporates our standalone reciprocity reform proposal
that was introduced in 2008 as SB
228 and HB
4683 and in 2009 as SB
148. This portion of the bill would grant universal recognition to
all other
states'
licenses/permits. This will allow West Virginia to establish
reciprocity with many states that do not meet the qualifications of our
current reciprocity law, including New Hampshire, Delaware,
Georgia, Alabama, Indiana, Colorado, Idaho, and North Dakota.
Michigan, Indiana, Kentucky,
Tennessee, Missouri, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Idaho, Utah, Arizona, and
Alaska all unilaterally recognize all other states’
licenses/permits.
- Close public access to personal information:
West Virginia is in an
increasingly small minority of states in which information about
individual who apply for or have been issued a license to carry
concealed weapons is public. Several newspapers, including the
virulently anti-gun Charleston Gazette, attempt to intimidate
law-abiding gun owners by regularly publishing lists of individuals who
are issued licenses in certain counties. Public access to these records
exposes gun owners to an increased risk of burglary and firearm theft
and endangers victims of domestic violence and other crime victims who
are attempting to avoid being found by the criminals who harmed them.
This bill limits access to concealed weapon license records to
law-enforcement and other government agencies for official purposes,
the individual applicant or licensee with respect to his or her own
file, and when ordered by a court for good cause shown. In 2007, the
House of Delegates unanimously passed HB
2223, which would have closed these records, but the Senate did not
act on the bill. This bill creates a requirement that the State Police
compile, publish, and make available to the public annual statistical
reports on concealed weapon licenses--including data on denials,
suspensions, and revocations of licenses and crimes (if any) committed
by licensees--that permit some form of ongoing public scrutiny of the
licensing program without divulging protected personal information.
- Restore concealed
handgun licenses to concealed weapon licenses:
Repeals a 2000 amendment to
the concealed weapon licensing law that
limited concealed weapon licenses to handguns only. This language
was necessary at the time to secure reciprocity with Virginia, whose
reciprocity law limited reciprocity to handgun-only licenses
(Virginia's reciprocity law was reformed in 2004 to eliminate this
problem). Although most states issue handgun-only licenses (no
other types of weapons), their reciprocity laws accommodate states that
issue broader licenses by recognizing concealed weapon licenses only
for the purpose of concealed handguns. Among the states that
issue concealed weapon (and not handgun-only) licenses are Arizona,
Delaware, Florida, Idaho, Kentucky, Montana, and North Dakota. This
bill will not affect
West Virginia's reciprocity with any state, but West Virginia licensees
would remain subject to applicable laws when carrying in other states,
including restrictions on the type of weapon and where weapons may be
carried.
- Background check improvements:
This bill
would
allow licensees to purchase firearms from a
federally-licensed gun dealer without a separate background check at
the time of each purchase ( click here
for list of states that already qualify) and would also expand the
number of states under whose laws West Virginia would qualify for
reciprocity. Passage of this provision would
likely qualify West Virginia for reciprocity with Minnesota, New
Mexico, and Texas.
Standalone
bill introduced in 2007 as SB
716.
- Remove
Social Security numbers from concealed weapon licenses:
This bill would bring
West Virginia into compliance with Section 7(b) of the Privacy Act of
1974, 5
U.S.C.
§ 552a note (Section 7 of the Privacy Act is not codified
within the U.S. Code but is printed in the notes that follow §
552a near the end of the page), by eliminating the statutory
requirement that CWL applicants
disclose their Social Security numbers, which is prohibited by federal
law. See, e.g., Stollenwerk v.
Miller,
2006 WL 463393 (E.D. Pa. 2006) (Pennsylvania statute requiring persons
to disclose Social Security number to buy a firearm or or obtain a
license to carry firearms violates Section 7 of the Privacy Act; state
police and local police agencies must provide Section 7(b) Privacy Act
SSN privacy warning whenever eliciting SSN); see generally, Public
comment by OpenCarry.org for NSP Public Hearing on 18 September 2006.
This bill also eliminates CWL
holders' exposure
to identity theft by removing our Social Security numbers from the
licenses, which are currently one-stop shops for identity thieves with
our full names, home addresses, birthdays, and Social Security
numbers.
- Expand
acceptable forms of training for concealed weapon licenses
to
allow proof of participation in competitive shooting events, current
military service, an honorable discharge from the military, and certain
other forms of proof of training to fulfill
the CWL training requirement. This bill would relieve active members of
the
military, veterans, and former police officers from the burden of
taking a redundant training
course.
- Modify the concealed
weapon license
expiration and renewal cycle:
Instead of issuing
concealed weapon licenses for 5 years, CWLs would
be issued for a period of between 2 and 7 years, expiring on the date
the licensee has a birthday that is evenly divisible by 5 during that
period. Licenses issued to members of the military would be
automatically extended during deployments. License fees will be
prorated. These provisions mirror the expiration and renewal
cycle for driver's licenses ( W.Va.
Code §17B-2-12), will make remembering to renew a CWL on
time easier, and eliminate any administrative burdens some sheriffs
have with widely varying renewal activity at various times.
- Create
nonresident
concealed weapon licenses:
Although this issue would
seem to be
moot with the passage of a good reciprocity law, some people may
benefit from being able to obtain a nonresident West Virginia license,
such as if they maintain multiple residences or desire a full exemption
from the federal Gun-Free School Zones Act (which, on its face, only
allows an exemption for concealed handgun licenses issued by the state
in which the school is located; this language was enacted before
reciprocity laws became common and many people are concerned about the
prospect of selective enforcement of this statute and believe that only
a license issued by West Virginia
and not just any license issued by a state whose licenses West Virginia state law recognizes
for the purposes of the state concealed weapons statute entitles them
to this exemption). Unlike West Virginia law and most other
states' similar laws, the federal GFSZA extends to not only school
property but a 1,000-foot zone extending in all directions from the
property line.
Standalone
bill introduced
in 2007 as SB
717.
- Clarify vague language pertaining to disqualifications
for mental health or substance abuse reasons to conform to the
specific, uniformly-administered criteria specified in Florida's
licensing law. The existing statutory language gives both
sheriffs and some applicants poor guidance on how these factors are to
be treated.
- Other major changes this bill makes are summarized in the
bill's end notes. Our research indicates that passage of this
bill would enable West Virginia to have the same reciprocity as
Kentucky, with the possible exception of Wyoming (click here
for Kentucky State Police Reciprocity site)
- Strengthen the state preemption law.
The existing state preemption
law has two major shortcomings: (1)
municipal ordinances passed prior to 1999 are grandfathered and (2)
there is no preemption of administrative rules of executive branch
agencies. Among other things, this bill would (1) nullify rules
at
state institutions of higher education prohibiting weapons on campus
(which are, in effect, only enforceable against students, faculty, and
staff through internal disciplinary processes), (2) nullify
grandfathered ordinances in Charleston, Dunbar, and South Charleston
prohibiting weapons on city property and in city buildings and Charleston's
handgun control ordinances, and resolve WVCDL's ongoing dispute
with the City of Martinsburg concerning Martinsburg's
city building gun ban.
Prior
version of this bill introduced in 2007 as SB
715 and in 2008 as SB
732.
Introduced in 2009 as HB
3335.
- Clarify
certain hunting statutes regulating the manner in which firearms may be
carried.
West Virginia's hunting laws ( W.Va.
Code §20-2-5,
§20-2-6,
§20-2-6a,
§20-2-19a,
§20-2-42l,
and §20-2-46e)
create a confusing system of regulations concerning the manner in which
individuals may carry guns for self-defense purposes when engaging in
outdoor activities. This bill would clarify the legality of
carrying handguns, either openly or concealed, as it relates to hunting
regulations, and exempt individuals licensed to carry concealed
handguns from certain regulations on the manner in which rifles and
shotguns must be transported in vehicles or the woods. These
regulations date back to when West Virginia had a highly restrictive
"may issue" license to carry law that did not distinguish between open
and concealed carry and under which it was virtually impossible for the
average law-abiding citizen to get a license, and thus hunting was the
only reason people could generally carry guns outside their
homes. This statute was declared unconstitutional in State ex rel.
City of Princeton v. Buckner, 180 W.Va. 457, 377 S.E.2d 139
(1988), and subsequently repealed and replaced with no requirement of a
license for open carry and a shall -issue law for licenses to carry
concealed.
For an example of the confusion that exists over these
statutes, see the conflicting advice concerning open carry in a vehicle
of
the State
Police
(open carry in a vehicle is legal) and the Division
of Natural Resources
(loaded firearms in vehicles illegal except concealed handguns carried
with
concealed handgun license) and the Supreme Court of Appeals's
decision in State ex rel.
West Virginia Div. of Nat. Resources v.
Cline, 200 W.Va. 101, 488 S.E.2d 376 (1997) ( click here
for majority slip opinion; click here
for Justice Maynard's dissenting slip opinion).
Prior
version of this bill introduced in 2008 as SB
319.
Introduced in 2009 as HB
3333.
- Exempt
concealed handgun license holders from the state gun-free school zones
law.
The federal Gun-Free School
Zones Act ( 18
U.S.C.
§ 922(q)) and state laws in Alabama
(Ala. Code §13A-11-72(e)),
California
(Cal. Penal Code §
626.9(l)), Delaware (Del. Code Title
11, §
1457), New
Hampshire (no state gun-free schools law), Oregon (Ore. Rev. Stat. §
166.370(3)(d)), Rhode Island (R.I. Gen. Law §
11-47-60), and Utah
(Utah Code §§ 76-10-505.5(3)(a)
and 523(2))
give people
licensed to carry concealed weapons a complete exemption from the
prohibitions on carrying weapons on school property. Many other
states have various provisions either allowing licensed individuals to
leave loaded guns in their cars without the need to unload before
entering school grounds (current West Virginia law exempts unloaded
guns in cars for anyone) and/or reducing the penalty for violations of
state laws from a felony to a misdemeanor for licensed individuals.
- Repeal
the State Capitol carry ban.
Prior
version of this bill introduced in 2007 as SB
649.
Prior
version of this bill introduced in 2008 as SB
136.
Introduced in 2009 as HB
2790 and SB
147.
- Clarify the Courthouse Carry Ban.
This bill will clarify the
existing statute prohibiting the possession of weapon in courthouses to
only apply to the portions of a courthouse used for judicial offices
and not to other offices or to any parking garage, parking lot, or
other area for vehicular travel or parking. This bill also copies
a Pennsylvania law that requires courthouses to provide secure weapon
storage areas for people to legally store their weapons while visiting
a courthouse.
- Castle Doctrine.
This bill would codify the
law of self-defense in West Virginia, which is presently common law
(i.e., past decisions of the Supreme Court of Appeals). Although West
Virginia generally follows the Castle Doctrine/Stand Your Ground
principles, we continue to hear a strong demand for enacting a statute
that is easily accessible to and comprehensible by the general
public--particularly in light of the passage of identical legislation
in a majority of other states and the growth of concealed carry
reciprocity.
The only substantive changes that this bill makes to West Virginia law
is (1) extending the Castle Doctrine presumption to occupied vehicles,
(2) specifically requiring a finding of probable cause that a person
did not act in self-defense, when the person claims to have acted in
self-defense, before arresting or initiating a criminal prosecution,
and (3) providing that a claim of self-defense triggers the full range
of self-defense law. The last change is designed to prevent a repeat of
the miscarriage of justice that occurred in State v. Jason H., 215 W. Va. 439,
599 S.E.2d 862 (2004) ( per curiam)
(slip opinions: majority
| dissent);
we strongly recommend reading the dissenting opinion of Justice Davis
& Chief Justice Maynard.
- Reduce concealed handgun license
fees
from $90 to $50 for each 5-year license.
Current fees for CHLs in
our surrounding states are $25 in Pennsylvania, $55 in Ohio, $60 in
Kentucky, and $15 to $50 (varies by county) in Virginia--all of which
also issue for terms of 5
years.
Introduced
in 2008 as SB
230.
- Provide
all
active and retired West Virginia law-enforcement officers the required
training to qualify under federal law to carry concealed firearms
nationwide.
This bill provides active and
retired
law-enforcement officers access to the required training and
certification to carry concealed firearms nationwide pursuant to the
federal Law-Enforcement Officer Safety Act of 2004 ( 18
U.S.C.
§ 926B and 18
U.S.C. § 926C). LEOSA permits qualified
law-enforcement officers, whether on or off duty, and qualified retired
law-enforcement officers who undergo annual training and certification
to carry concealed firearms nationwide notwithstanding state or local
laws. WVCDL has updated this proposal since its introduction in
2008 as
SB 152.
Prior
version of this bill introduced in
2007 as SB
647.
Prior
version of this bill introduced in 2008 as SB
152.
Introduced in 2009 as SB
305.
- Allow anyone legally able
to possess a handgun
to carry it in their car's glove box, console or other closed container
without a concealed handgun license.
This law mirrors existing
laws in Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky,
and South Carolina that allow any adult who may legally possess
firearms to carry a gun in the glove compartment or certain other
closed containers without having to obtain a concealed handgun
license. Additionally, the states of Colorado, Louisiana,
Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Texas, and Wyoming
completely exempt any form of concealed carry inside a vehicle from
their respective licensing requirements. Finally, Alaska and Vermont
require no license for an adult to carry a handgun, either openly or
concealed. See the Traveler's Map at OpenCarry.org for
more info.
Individuals licensed to carry concealed weapons are not affected by
this
bill.
- Allow concealed carry in vehicles without
license.
This bill is similar to the
above bill but would not limit how an unlicensed individual may carry
or transport a concealed handgun in a motor vehicle. Colorado, Louisiana,
Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Texas, and Wyoming
completely exempt any form of concealed carry inside a vehicle from
their respective licensing requirements. Alaska and Vermont
require no license for an adult to carry a handgun, either openly or
concealed. See the Traveler's Map at OpenCarry.org for
more info.
As with the above bill, individuals
licensed to carry concealed weapons are
not affected by this
bill.
- Standardize NFA local approval process.
This bill establishes a
nondiscretionary process for the approval of applications to acquire
weapons covered by the National Firearms Act (machine guns,
short-barreled rifles, short-barreled shotguns, silencers, etc.) by
local chief law-enforcement officials.
- Modify no-discharge zones.
This bill would create an exemption to the areas within which
the discharge of firearms is prohibited to exempt from the prohibition
on discharging a firearm within 500 feet of a dwelling (1) an occupant
of the dwelling if no other homes are located within 500 feet and (2)
any person who has the written consent of all owners or lessees of
homes within 500 feet.
- Clarify the correctional facility weapons
ban.
This bill modifies the prohibition on possessing weapons and
certain other prohibited items in correctional facilities to apply only
within the secure area within which inmates are housed rather than the
entire "grounds," which could be construed to mean public parking lots
and other unsecured, open, public spaces.
- Prohibit
straw
purchases of
firearms under state law.
Straw purchases are already
prohibited under federal law but this bill would give the state
jurisdiction to prosecute straw purchasers. This bill is based
on a 2007 Virginia law
promoted by
the Virginia Citizens Defense League (VCDL) to protect Virginia gun
dealers from predatory lawsuits by New York City Mayor Mike
Bloomberg. This bill exempts and protects legitimate undercover
law-enforcement operations.
Introduced in 2007 as SB
648.
Introduced in 2008 as SB
252.
Introduced in 2009 as SB
139.
- Clarify the offense of brandishing.
This bill modifies the
definition of brandishing under West Virginia law to conform to
Virginia's brandishing statute, Va.
Code § 18.2-282.
- Clarify the offense of wanton
endangerment involving a firearm.
This bill clarifies the
offense of wanton endangerment involving a firearm by adding as an
element of the offense of wanton endangerment involving a firearm that
the firearm was intentionally or recklessly discharged. This bill
reverses Syllabus Point 5, State v.
Hulbert, 209 W.Va. 217, 544 S.E.2d 919 (2001) (“Because the
offense of wanton endangerment with a firearm is defined, not in terms
of whether the firearm is discharged, but merely with reference to the
commission of ‘any act,’ the discharge of a firearm is not an element
of West Virginia Code § 61-7-12.”) (slip opinion available here).
The Hulbert decision
effectively eliminated any distinction between the misdemeanor offense
of brandishing and the felony offense of wanton endangerment when the
weapon involved is a firearm.
- Establish
a statute of limitations for certain felony weapons offenses.
Existing West Virginia law
has no statute of limitations for most
felonies, even nonviolent offenses. This bill would establish a
3-year statute of limitations for criminal prosecutions for most felony
weapons offenses under Chapter
61, Article 7 (§61-7-1 through §61-7-15) of the West
Virginia Code,
including second offense carrying a concealed weapon without a license,
possession of a deadly weapon on school property, and unlawful sales of
firearms to prohibited possessors.
- Strengthen the
Emergency Powers Protection Act.
Introduced
in 2008 as SB
728.
Introduced in 2009 as HB
3331.
- Repeal
obsolete statutory language pertaining to licenses to carry deadly
weapons.
This bill repeals
long-inoperative statutory language
we found during our research on other bills that pertains to West
Virginia's old license to carry statute that was declared
unconstitutional in State ex rel.
City of Princeton v. Buckner, 180 W.Va. 457, 377 S.E.2d 139
(1988), and subsequently repealed and replaced with no requirement of a
license for open carry and a shall issue law for licenses to carry
concealed.
Introduced
in 2008 as SB
730.
All the proposed bills above are in PDF format. Copies of
these bills are available in Microsoft Word and Word Perfect format and
may be obtained
by clicking the e-mail link below and requesting a copy. These bills
are
merely WVCDL proposals and have not been introduced yet in the
Legislature. Some of these bills have inconsistent provisions
that would require reconciliation before final enactment into law. All
gun-related bills that are pending before the Legislature are posted on
WVCDL's
Legislative Tracking Service.
Contact Jim Mullins,
WVCDL President, for questions or comments.
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