ND: Gun Law Reform Amended in Senate, returned to House

An omnibus gun law reform bill has been making its way through the legislature.  It was introduced in North Dakota by Representative Roscoe Streyle, from Minot.  The bill, HB 1241(pdf), would bring into law reforms that have proven popular in other states.   Among the reforms in the bill:

1. The restrictions on the use of legal gun mufflers and short barreled rifles for hunting would be removed.  These restrictions never made any sense, and are being eliminated all over the country.  35 states do not prevent the use of gun mufflers for hunting; no legislative purpose for the heavy handed restrictions on gun mufflers has been found.  From the bill:

 1.
An individual in lawful possession of a device that will silence or deaden the sound or natural report of a firearm when the firearm is discharged may hunt any game for which the individual is licensed and for which a firearm is allowed with that device for or attached to the firearm.
 
2. 
An individual in lawful possession of a short-barreled rifle may hunt any game for which the individual is licensed and for which a rifle is allowed.

2. Restrictions on people with concealed carry permits are removed for a number of 'gun free zones'.    The zones to be eliminated for permit holders originally included church functions, publicly owned parks(where hunting is not allowed), political rallies or functions, and musical concerts.  Churches were stripped from the bill.   As concealed carry permit holders have been found to be more responsible than police officers, reducing the number of "gun free zones" is a popular gun law reform. 

3.   The reform to remove the prohibition on hunters and trappers from carrying a loaded handgun in their vehicle has been stripped from the bill.

4.  The "shall sign" requirement for Sheriffs and other Chief Law Enforcement Officers (CLEOs) to sign on the federal forms required to obtain tax stamps for gun mufflers and some firearms is no longer in the bill.  That reform was removed from this bill, an placed in a separate bill, which has passed both the House and Senate unanimously.

It is likely that the remaining reforms will pass the House.  The bill originally passed the House 78-15.  The amended bill passed the Senate 45 - 2 and was returned to the House on April 7th, 2015.

There is a good chance that this much reduced reform bill will be signed by Governor Jack Dalrymple.

©2015 by Dean Weingarten: Permission to share is granted when this notice is included. Link to Gun Watch