Mayor’s firearms control campaign locked and loaded
A band of mayors and law enforcement officials from across the country this week kicked off a campaign against federal legislation that would keep states from setting their own gun control standards for concealed weapons.
Mayor Thomas Menino, whose Mayors Against Illegal Guns group launched the campaign “Our Lives, Our Laws,” said Washington gun lobbyists and their allies in Congress shouldn’t be setting standards for each state.
“State and local officials, and police who fight crime on the front lines, should be deciding how to best protect our communities,” he said.
“Forcing states to accept a new federal mandate … for who can carry concealed, loaded guns would be irresponsible, shortsighted and dangerous.”
Menino co-chairs the mayor’s group with New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg.
The proposed legislation, the National Right-to-Carry Reciprocity Act of 2011, was scheduled for discussion during a hearing of the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism and Homeland Security yesterday.
If passed, states would have to honor every other state’s permit to carry a concealed gun.
Individuals could carry weapons in public places from state to state, even if they do not meet minimum public safety standards set by a certain state.
A similar measure was defeated in the Senate last year.
Follow Steve Annear on Twitter @steveannear.
