Observations and comments about state government by State Representative Robert W. Pritchard.
After years of discussion and various bill drafts, advocates for the right of citizens to carry firearms failed to garner enough votes for passage in the House last week. House leadership ruled that the issue needed a three-fifths vote for passage since the bill eliminated the power of home rule communities to regulate firearms. The bill was placed on postponed consideration which allows another vote at a later date.
The bill would establish tough statewide standards for the issuance of licenses to carry concealed firearms in Illinois. I supported the reasonable restrictions on issuing licenses and excluding firearms from certain places. The license fee would have generated an estimated $40 million over two years to pay for state police staff to process the licenses, conduct more thorough background checks and update their computer system.
Fears that a concealed carry law would contribute to increased shootings and crime is unfounded based upon the experiences of the 48 other states that have such laws. Even cities like New York, Los Angeles and Miami have not seen the increase in violence from allowing concealed carry firearms that opponents predict for Illinois.
I will continue to work with the bill’s sponsor to address the concerns expressed by many college and university presidents including Northern Illinois University.
District Office 815-748-3494 or E-Mail to bob@pritchardstaterep.com
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The “tough new standards” for conceal carry don’t address the problem we have with the mentally ill purchasing weapons. The FOID requirements and the conceal carry wording is the same. If a persons hasn’t be adjudicated mentally defective or been in a mental facility the previous 5 years he can be eligible for a conceal carry permit and a FOID card. The NIU killer bought his weapons legally despite being discharged from the military for psychological reasons. He also spent a year in a mental health facility and had a history of taking anti-depressant medications.When he stopped taking his medicine he lost control. If our legislators care about public safety, why don’t they fix background checks for gun owners? Could it be fear of the gun lobby that is stopping them? The Violence Policy Center reports that since May 2007 conceal carry permit holders have killed 11 police officers and 300 civilians and in the process they have committed many serious felonies. Conceal carry won’t prevent assasinations and school shootings or make our community safer.