HR 1243- SAFE Act

[NineseveN]

Mods, I ask for a little latitude on this given the magnitude. This might not be the "correct" place to post this info, but this is the most traveled area and I thought it deserved the attention.


Position On The Second Amendment To The Constitution
By U.S. Rep. John Hostettler (author of SAFE Act)

The United States Constitution does not delegate to Congress the power to legislate on every issue facing our nation. In fact, the powers of Congress are specifically listed in Article I, Section 8, of the Constitution and are expressly limited by the Tenth Amendment. The power of the federal government is further curtailed by the amendments to the Constitution known as the Bill of Rights. This issue of legislative power is particularly relevant to the question of firearm regulation.

The Second Amendment reads: "A well-regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed." I firmly believe that this provision prohibits the federal government from denying citizens the right to bear arms. Thus, absent a Constitutional amendment, I could not, even if I wanted to, support legislation which restricts the ownership of firearms. To do otherwise would force me to break the oath I took as a Congressman to uphold the Constitution.

Some contend that the Second Amendment only applies to state militias which have become the National Guard, and not to individuals. I reject this interpretation -- for if the Second Amendment only applied to the National Guard, it would have been unnecessary, since Article I, Sec. 8, of the Constitution already sets forth the management of the militias, including their "arming". Thus, unless the intent of the Second Amendment is to grant " the people" the right to keep and bear arms, it is redundant and without purpose. Moreover, I believe that it is inconsistent to interpret the Second Amendment as not granting an individual right, while recognizing such individual rights in the rest of the Bill of Rights. This is especially relevant, given that the sole purpose in drafting the Bill of Rights was to place limits on the power of the federal government over the affairs of the people. Finally, any interpretation ignoring "the people" goes against the plain reading of the Second Amendment.

While the foregoing would be sufficient reason to refrain from legislating restrictions on firearm ownership, I must add that I believe the authors of the Bill of Rights were wise in preserving the right to keep and bear arms. The ability to defend oneself and family is the fundamental right which preserves all others. The authors of Indiana's Constitution in 1851 agreed, as evident by their including Article I, Section 32, which reads: "The people shall have a right to bear arms, for the defense of themselves and the State."

Many citizens choose to own a firearm for a variety of reasons: for sport, for hunting, for collecting, or for protection. In my view any or all of these are good reasons. More importantly, the Constitution guarantees that the citizens of the United States have this freedom to keep and bear arms, and I will continue to promote this freedom in the future.


DATE: Tuesday November, 8th ALL DAY (call when you can)

WHO TO CALL: House Committee on the Judiciary.

NUMBER: 1-202-225-3951




Secure Access to Firearms Enhancement (SAFE) Act of 2005 (Introduced in House)

HR 1243 IH


109th CONGRESS

1st Session

H. R. 1243
To amend title 18 of the United States Code to provide for reciprocity in regard to the manner in which nonresidents of a State may carry certain concealed firearms in that State.


IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

March 10, 2005
Mr. HOSTETTLER (for himself, Mr. JONES of North Carolina, Mr. SESSIONS, Mr. WICKER, Mr. DOOLITTLE, Mr. WAMP, Mr. BURGESS, Mr. GOODE, Mr. SOUDER, Mr. GINGREY, Mr. PENCE, Mr. BARRETT of South Carolina, Mr. HALL, Mr. WILSON of South Carolina, Mr. CANNON, Mr. ADERHOLT, Mr. BARTLETT of Maryland, Mr. BRADLEY of New Hampshire, Mr. MCHENRY, Mr. FOLEY, Mrs. CUBIN, Mr. CANTOR, Mrs. MUSGRAVE, Mr. WESTMORELAND, Mr. BURTON of Indiana, Mr. OTTER, Mr. LEWIS of Kentucky, Ms. GINNY BROWN-WAITE of Florida, Mr. SODREL, and Mr. ALEXANDER) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


A BILL
To amend title 18 of the United States Code to provide for reciprocity in regard to the manner in which nonresidents of a State may carry certain concealed firearms in that State.


Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the `Secure Access to Firearms Enhancement (SAFE) Act of 2005'.

SEC. 2. RECIPROCITY FOR THE CARRYING OF CERTAIN CONCEALED FIREARMS.

(a) In General- Chapter 44 of title 18, United States Code, is amended by inserting after section 926A the following:

`Sec. 926D. Reciprocity for the carrying of certain concealed firearms

`Notwithstanding any provision of the law of any State or political subdivision thereof, a person who is not prohibited by Federal law from possessing, transporting, shipping, or receiving a firearm , and is--

`(1) carrying a valid license or permit which is issued pursuant to the law of any State and which permits the person to carry a concealed firearm ; or

`(2) otherwise entitled to carry a concealed firearm in and pursuant to the law of the State of the person's residence,

may carry in any State a concealed firearm in accordance with the terms of the license or with the laws of the State of the person's residence, subject to the laws of the State in which the firearm is carried concerning specific types of locations in which firearms may not be carried.'.

(b) Clerical Amendment- The table of sections for chapter 44 of title 18 is amended by inserting after the item relating to section 926C the following:

`926D. Reciprocity for the carrying of certain concealed firearms.'.

SEC. 3. EFFECTIVE DATE.

The provisions of this Act and the amendments made by this Act shall take effect 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act.



Cosponsors:

COSPONSORS(69), ALPHABETICAL [followed by Cosponsors withdrawn]: (Sort: by date)
Rep Aderholt, Robert B. [AL-4] - 3/10/2005 Rep Alexander, Rodney [LA-5] - 3/10/2005
Rep Barrett, J. Gresham [SC-3] - 3/10/2005 Rep Bartlett, Roscoe G. [MD-6] - 3/10/2005
Rep Bilirakis, Michael [FL-9] - 4/14/2005 Rep Bishop, Rob [UT-1] - 6/8/2005
Rep Bishop, Sanford D., Jr. [GA-2] - 5/26/2005 Rep Boozman, John [AR-3] - 5/12/2005
Rep Bradley, Jeb [NH-1] - 3/10/2005 Rep Brown, Henry E., Jr. [SC-1] - 10/20/2005
Rep Brown-Waite, Ginny [FL-5] - 3/10/2005 Rep Burgess, Michael C. [TX-26] - 3/10/2005
Rep Burton, Dan [IN-5] - 3/10/2005 Rep Cannon, Chris [UT-3] - 3/10/2005
Rep Cantor, Eric [VA-7] - 3/10/2005 Rep Capito, Shelley Moore [WV-2] - 5/5/2005
Rep Carter, John R. [TX-31] - 6/8/2005 Rep Cubin, Barbara [WY] - 3/10/2005
Rep Davis, Jo Ann [VA-1] - 4/14/2005 Rep Doolittle, John T. [CA-4] - 3/10/2005
Rep Emerson, Jo Ann [MO-8] - 5/12/2005 Rep Foley, Mark [FL-16] - 3/10/2005
Rep Foxx, Virginia [NC-5] - 9/22/2005 Rep Franks, Trent [AZ-2] - 5/5/2005
Rep Garrett, Scott [NJ-5] - 4/14/2005 Rep Gingrey, Phil [GA-11] - 3/10/2005
Rep Goode, Virgil H., Jr. [VA-5] - 3/10/2005 Rep Goodlatte, Bob [VA-6] - 4/14/2005
Rep Hall, Ralph M. [TX-4] - 3/10/2005 Rep Hayworth, J. D. [AZ-5] - 5/26/2005
Rep Hensarling, Jeb [TX-5] - 7/28/2005 Rep Herger, Wally [CA-2] - 3/14/2005
Rep Jenkins, William L. [TN-1] - 5/5/2005 Rep Jindal, Bobby [LA-1] - 6/29/2005
Rep Johnson, Timothy V. [IL-15] - 5/12/2005 Rep Jones, Walter B., Jr. [NC-3] - 3/10/2005
Rep Keller, Ric [FL-8] - 5/26/2005 Rep Kingston, Jack [GA-1] - 6/29/2005
Rep Kuhl, John R. "Randy", Jr. [NY-29] - 5/26/2005 Rep Lewis, Ron [KY-2] - 3/10/2005
Rep Marchant, Kenny [TX-24] - 9/22/2005 Rep McCotter, Thaddeus G. [MI-11] - 5/5/2005
Rep McHenry, Patrick T. [NC-10] - 3/10/2005 Rep McIntyre, Mike [NC-7] - 5/12/2005
Rep Miller, Candice S. [MI-10] - 6/29/2005 Rep Miller, Jeff [FL-1] - 3/14/2005
Rep Musgrave, Marilyn N. [CO-4] - 3/10/2005 Rep Ney, Robert W. [OH-18] - 4/14/2005
Rep Norwood, Charlie [GA-9] - 4/14/2005 Rep Otter, C. L. (Butch) [ID-1] - 3/10/2005
Rep Pearce, Stevan [NM-2] - 4/14/2005 Rep Pence, Mike [IN-6] - 3/10/2005
Rep Peterson, Collin C. [MN-7] - 4/14/2005 Rep Peterson, John E. [PA-5] - 4/14/2005
Rep Pickering, Charles W. (Chip) [MS-3] - 6/29/2005 Rep Platts, Todd Russell [PA-19] - 4/14/2005
Rep Putnam, Adam H. [FL-12] - 5/26/2005 Rep Rehberg, Dennis R. [MT] - 6/29/2005
Rep Rogers, Harold [KY-5] - 4/14/2005 Rep Rogers, Mike D. [AL-3] - 5/5/2005
Rep Sessions, Pete [TX-32] - 3/10/2005 Rep Shuster, Bill [PA-9] - 5/26/2005
Rep Sodrel, Michael E. [IN-9] - 3/10/2005 Rep Souder, Mark E. [IN-3] - 3/10/2005
Rep Wamp, Zach [TN-3] - 3/10/2005 Rep Westmoreland, Lynn A. [GA-8] - 3/10/2005
Rep Wicker, Roger F. [MS-1] - 3/10/2005 Rep Wilson, Joe [SC-2] - 3/10/2005
Rep Young, Don [AK] - 5/12/2005

Info collected from GoA release, AR15.com and The High Road.

[justashooter]

70 sponsors?

not gonna fly.

[Bigger_Is_Better]

Maybe, maybe not, but posting it here gives over 18,000 people the chance to call their Reps and bolster that number. Thanks for posting this for us to see. My Rep is already on the list!!!

Aaron

[NineseveN]

Originally posted by Bigger_Is_Better
Maybe, maybe not, but posting it here gives over 18,000 people the chance to call their Reps and bolster that number. Thanks for posting this for us to see. My Rep is already on the list!!!

Aaron

That was kinda my thought. We often defeat ourselves by not taking the time to make one friggen phone call or send one letter, then we complain how we're not being represented. If we are not using the system, we have no one to blame but ourselves. Just make the call guys, it won't hurt, it may help.

[lew]

I'll be sure to thank my Rep for supporting this.

[ar15junkie]

Nice..

I don't understand something though. Why does he say that congress is not permitted to legislate on gun issues, then go on to author a pro gun bill?

I applaud the effort and have contacted my rep.

[NineseveN]

Originally posted by ar15junkie
Nice..

I don't understand something though. Why does he say that congress is not permitted to legislate on gun issues, then go on to author a pro gun bill?

I applaud the effort and have contacted my rep.

That's the way politics works, in order to enforce congress not legislating on gun issues, there needs to be legislation that reminds them that they cannot and then affirms it. Not saying it makes sense to me, but thats how they see it. And to be honest, passing legislation is what these boneheads do, I doubt you'd find much support revoking or ingoring the illegal or unconstitutional laws, but a new law that says those laws are wrong and are to to be followed has a shot. It's their world, we only get to play in it sometimes.

My letter to my congresscriters that did not show support for this yet:

Dear Congressman,

I had the pleasure of writing you once before on a similar issue. I would like to turn your attention to HR 1243 (known as the SAFE Act of 2005).

This has been introduced by U.S. Rep. John Hostettler and would, under my understanding, provide something akin to full faith and credit to licenses to carry concealed firearms via reciprocity much like driver's licenses and marriage certificates.

I know that, as a law-abiding citizen, I cannot expect criminals and violent felons to avoid targeting me if I am on vacation or if I am traveling on business. Being a visitor in another state does not make one immune from the conditions and scenarios that would necessitate self-defense in their home state, where they are legally licensed to carry a concealed firearm if they so choose to be.

Currently, there are some ways for a person to circumvent the dangers of vacationing or traveling out of state by obtaining non-resident permits in states without reciprocity that offer such a license or honor another state’s non-resident permit, or to only travel to and through states which have reciprocity with your home state where you are legally licensed.

However, some of these non-resident permits cost approximately $100, and having one does not mean that you will get all of the states you want or need to travel to; typically, it requires more than one non-resident permit if you travel to more than 1 or 2 states.

For instance, in order for me, as a law-abiding citizen and resident of the sate of pennsylvania, to travel to Virginia Beach this year and remain equipped to protect myself, I must apply for and purchase a non-resident permit from the state of Virginia, which will cost $100. If I need to or choose to travel to Alabama, I must get another non-resident permit (as neither Pennsylvania’s nor Virginia’s permits are valid there). The most logical choice would be a Florida non-resident permit (Florida also has reciprocity with PA and covers many more states with reciprocity than most other permits). That’s another $117 for that permit. God forbid I want to vacation in Maryland this coming year, I must leave my firearm at home for that. During the entire time I would be spending there (10 days or so), I would be unable to defend myself should I become victim to Maryland’s criminal element.

However, for the meager comparative price of renewing my driver’s license during each renewal period, I may drive as often as I like to any state in this nation, provided I abide by the posted speed limits and state and local laws while doing so. Both automobiles and firearms are inanimate objects. Both can be used for illegal or legitimate purposes, but they cannot act on their own. In most cases, both require a license to make use of in public, yet one receives “full faith and credit”, and the other does not. I am eager to hear your stance on the matter and also HR 1243. I enjoyed our previous correspondence and I hope to hear from you soon. I also hope to see your name in support for HR 1243.

Thank you,
Moi.

[Lon Moer]

Thus, absent a Constitutional amendment, I could not, even if I wanted to, support legislation which restricts the ownership of firearms. To do otherwise would force me to break the oath I took as a Congressman to uphold.

my congress reps. couldn't give a damn about their "oath".

[.308er1]

infringe: 1. to encroach upon in a way that violates law or the rights of another.

encroach: 1. to enter by gradual steps or by stealth into the possessions or rights of another.
2. to advance beyond the usual or proper limits.

I really don't think that the framers of our constitution needed to be told the true meaning of these words,regarding the second ammendment...