The Statesman – by Julie Chang
The Texas House on Tuesday tentatively approved a measure that would allow school employees to store guns in their cars parked on school property.
The provision, along with several others related to public schools, was tacked onto Senate Bill 1566, which would make changes to how school boards operate. The gun amendment originally was proposed in standalone House Bill 1692 by Rep. Cole Hefner, R-Mt. Pleasant, but the bill hasn’t made it to the House floor. Tuesday was the deadline for the House to tentatively approve Senate bills for the session.
Hefner’s amendment would allow licensed individuals to store a firearm in a locked car that is parked in a school parking lot. His original bill had 51 authors and co-authors, both Democrats and Republicans.
In committee, Hefner said that the idea for the bill came from a teacher in his district who often worked late and didn’t have means to protect himself.
According the Texas Association of School Boards, which helps draft policies for school districts, state law prohibits concealed handguns from being carried into a school or onto school grounds where a school activity is taking place. According to a Texas attorney general opinion, if a high school marching band were, for example, to use a parking lot for rehearsal, the school district may restrict firearms from the parking lot during the rehearsal.
A bill passed in 2011 prohibited employers from restricting their employees from storing lawfully possessed firearms in their vehicles that were parked in their employers’ parking lots; however, school district parking lots were excluded.
Other amendments that were tacked onto SB 1566 Tuesday night addressed districts of innovations, lice, charter schools and after-school programs.
The House likely will pass SB 1566 on Wednesday, and the Senate will have to approve changes and amendments to the bill before it’s sent to Gov. Greg Abbott’s desk.
TREASON, TREASON, ANY TALK OF GUNS IS TREASON, PERIOD.
No one needs the governments permission to carry a weapon. All you so called officials can K.M.A.