GOA Texas Bullet: 5-3-2021

Written by Felisha Bull Published May 4, 2021

Constitutional Carry: Senate Hearing was a Success!

Last Thursday, the Senate Special Committee on Constitutional Issues met for 10 hours to hear public testimony on HB 1927, Constitutional Carry. See the video.
187 people registered “in favor” (with 78 testifying) and 161 registered “against” (with 72 testifying). Five people registered “on,” mostly law enforcement personnel.
See Rachel Malone, GOA Texas Director give invited testimony.
At the end of the hearing, the committee voted 5-2 to move the bill forward without any amendments.

Lt. Gov. Patrick has said he will bring HB 1927 to the Senate floor this week. However, some Senators have still failed to publicly support Constitutional Carry – including these Republicans: Senators Nelson, Nichols, Bettencourt, Taylor, Huffman, Seliger.
We expect several amendments to be considered on the floor. While we think the bill is strong exactly as it is, we’re currently discussing possible amendments we could agree to that would not weaken the bill’s effect.
We MUST avoid adding any poison pill amendments that would result in a point of order when the bill goes back to the House. That could run out the clock and kill the bill. See our analysis of some proposed amendments.
If the Senate passes HB 1927 exactly the same way the House did, then the bill can go directly to the Governor. This would be the quickest and best path.
CALL OR EMAIL NOW: Urge your legislators to support a clean Constitutional Carry bill with NO poison pills! CLICK HERE to use our email form. Or, click here to see all the Senators’ contact information.

Last week, the Texas House passed HB 2622 and the Texas Senate passed SB 513. The bills now go to the opposite chamber. See our comparison chart.
Some of you seem to be alarmed and think that the amendment to SB 513 neutered the bill. It certainly did not.
While the amendment removes the criminal penalty for some individuals, it still has three enforcement mechanisms, and SB 513 is actually still stronger than HB 2622.
It’s important to note that most of the 2A Sanctuary filed bills (including the HB 2622 passed by the House) had no individual criminal penalty. Instead, they remove funding.
See a full explanation of these bills – what they do, what they won’t do, and what the amendments mean.

HB 957 by Oliverson, Suppressor Freedom, passed 2nd Reading in the House today. This is priority legislation and we appreciate all of you who testified for it recently in the State Affairs hearing!
The bill repeals current state law restrictions on owning a suppressor without getting the Federal tax stamp.
It also creates a class of “Made in Texas” suppressors that will not be subject to Federal regulations and allows a path to get the law judicially affirmed without someone needing to risk arrest and prosecution.
Next, after 3rd reading tomorrow, the bill will move to the Senate. Stay tuned for news on a hearing!
See our one-page handout here.

With 28 days left in the legislative session, end-of-session deadlines are approaching quickly!
May 13 is the last day for the House to hear HB’s on a regular calendar.
However, because the House calendar tends to run behind as it races toward May 13, a House Bill should be set for a calendar by the end of this week to have a chance of passing.
See a May calendar with daily legislative deadlines.

“Data shows that every day, thousands of people in the United States use a gun to defend themselves. We are safer when we reduce barriers and help more Texans to be able to protect their families,” said Rachel Malone in her testimony to the Senate special committee on Constitutional Issues.
“We’re gonna come out with a strong bill, and I’ll believe we’ll pass it because we brought people together,” Patrick told conservative radio host Dana Loesch on Thursday afternoon. “And hopefully it’ll be on the governor’s desk soon, and we’ll get it signed.”
“I believe [Constitutional Carry] is making progress,” Abbott said. “Once the Senate passes it out, the House and Senate will convene and work out any differences and get it to my desk, and I’ll be signing it.”
“It is time for Texas to join the 20 states that have passed common-sense constitutional carry laws,” Sen. Charles Schwertner, R-Georgetown, said to open the public hearing.
“We have people who have never been to the Capitol before who have contacted us saying, ‘Hey, I want to show up and have my voice heard. How do I do this?’ And that’s really inspiring.” Felisha Bull, Texas deputy director for Gun Owners of America, told Spectrum News 1.