 A legal technicality respecting
home rule may require that
legislation allowing people to carry concealed firearms would need
to be passed with a three-fifths majority vote instead of a simple
majority of 60 votes. For sponsors and lobbyists, that might mean
they will have to round up 11 more votes than previously thought.
Home rule allows for municipalities to enforce regulations that are
stricter than state law, and this usually applies to taxing and
public-safety powers.
Todd Vandermyde of the National Rifle Association said that no
municipality should be able to overtake an individual's
constitutional right to carry arms.
"We've seen municipalities like Chicago try to abuse that power.
They had a handgun ban for 30 years until the court said no. Now
they want to put a $250 tax on your ability to use that right,"
Vandermyde said.
In 2008, the Supreme Court ruled in a landmark case that upheld a
person's right to have firearms in Washington, D.C. The case paved
the way for the MacDonald v. Chicago ruling last year that struck
down a Chicago law that banned handguns in the city.
Ashley Niebur, attorney for the Illinois Municipal League, said
House Bill 148 -- the plan being considered -- deals
specifically with a part of Illinois law that favors home rule.
"We're looking at just that subsection, and there's not the
requirement for the three-fifths (majority). Now, maybe that's
arguable, but that's not my call," Niebur said.
Under the Illinois Constitution, the General Assembly can
override home rule with a three-fifths majority, but some argue that
it will paint strokes too broad for cities like Chicago and Oak
Park.
"Local municipalities know their population better," said Mark
Walsh, campaign director for the Illinois Campaign to Prevent Gun
Violence.
[to top of second column] |
Steve Brown, spokesman for House Speaker Michael Madigan,
D-Chicago, said that if the bill is brought to the floor,
parliamentarians, including Madigan, would decide how many votes the
measure will need to pass.
"In past sessions, bills that dealt with gun safety that
prevented local municipalities, home-rule municipalities, from
enacting strong gun safety laws required 71 votes," said Brown,
noting that Madigan usually hasn't supported efforts for
concealed-carry laws.
Donald Moran, president of the Illinois State Rifle Association,
was confident the proposal has enough votes to win passage.
"If we pass with a supermajority, that's enough to override a
veto from the governor, so we'll see how it goes," Moran said.
But a growing speculation that Gov. Pat Quinn may veto the
measure might force supporters to start all over again.
[Illinois
Statehouse News; By MELISSA LEU]
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