New Gun Rights Bill

There is a new gun rights bill in the Michigan legislature sponsored by Khaaan!

Senate and House introduce gun rights measures

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LANSING—Bills to help ensure that all Michigan gun owners are guaranteed the right to lawfully store firearms in their locked and privately owned vehicles while in an employer’s parking lot were introduced Thursday in the Michigan Legislature, said sponsors Sen. Roger Kahn and Rep. Paul Opsommer.

Kahn, R-Saginaw Township, and Opsommer, R-DeWitt, were joined by Rep. Joel Sheltrown, D-West Branch, and Sen. Jim Barcia, D-Bay City, as primary bill sponsors.

The bipartisan, bicameral measures protect the rights of gun owners storing firearms in their vehicles, as long as all current storage laws are being followed. The proposed laws would not apply to company cars and would not alter Michigan’s concealed pistol law.

“Michigan residents have a right to have a firearm available for self-defense, if needed, during the daily commute to and from work,” Kahn said. “Concealed pistol license holders often face circumstances where they cannot be protected on their way to or from work because they have nowhere to store their gun once there.”

According to the National Rifle Association, 48 states, including Michigan, allow people to carry firearms in their vehicles for personal protection. More than one of every four of America’s 65-80 million gun owners carries a firearm in their vehicle for protection. Legislation similar to the Michigan plan was recently adopted in 10 other states.

Workplace Firearms Storage laws have been upheld by courts in other states. The courts have ruled that a business owner’s private property rights are not affected by laws preventing the micro-management of the lawful contents of a person’s privately-owned automobile.

Opsommer agrees, stating that, "We need to ensure that employers can not create over-reaching company policies that violate the Constitution and provide an excuse to terminate employees whose political views differ from those of management. People who lawfully own firearms and are following appropriate storage laws should not lose the ability to transport them in privately owned vehicles."

Senate Bills 792 and 793, and House Bills 5302 and 5303 will be considered in the early fall after work on the state budget has been completed.