After the 86th Legislative Regular Session, 820 bills were decided to take effect on September 1, 2019. Now, the date has come, along with several bills from the House and the Senate that change the rules on gun handling in Texas.
Remember that it is typically not allowed to carry firearms in plain sight on other people’s property, unless you have the proper licensing.
New Gun Control Bills from the House and the Senate:
House Bill 121: Defense to prosecution; if you enter someone else’s property and carry a handgun when it is stated that you cannot (like on a sign or some other document), you will not be charged with an offense if you leave when asked.
House Bill 1078: Waiving fees; certain fees for driver’s licenses and handgun licenses are waived if you have CPR certification (and meet other conditions).
House Bill 1143: Gun storage regulation; schools are unable to prevent employees with gun licenses from storing weapons in school-provided parking areas, as long as the weapons are not in plain sight.
House Bill 1177: Defense to prosecution; if you carry a gun illegally, you will not be charged with an offense if there is a state of disaster (or if there was one in the last 168 hours).
House Bill 1552: Firearm training; county jailors will undergo a training program for firearm usage. They also get a certificate of firearms proficiency once they complete the program.
House Bill 1791: Wrongful exclusion; if you carry a handgun onto government property and have the proper licensing, the government cannot take any action to forbid you from entering with a gun.
House Bill 2137: Waiving fees; honorably retired peace officers may be able to avoid paying certain fees if they qualify.
House Bill 3231: Gun policy; this bill helps further define what municipalities (city governments) and counties are able to control as far as gun control.
House Bill 3706: Firearm training; certain railroad peace officers and rangers may be exempt from having to complete a handgun proficiency course to obtain a handgun license.
House Bill 4428: Handgun licensing; license holders can extend their license ahead of time and receive a duplicate license with the new extension date. Handgun licenses may expire earlier if their lawful presence in the USA expires first.
Senate Bill 535: Gun policy; licensed gun holders can legally bring firearms into places of worship.
Senate Bill 772: Gun policy; failure to forbid the carrying of handguns on one’s property cannot be used as evidence in a trial against someone else caused by injury.
The aforementioned bills are just a fraction of everything that took effect on September 1. A list of all of the September 1 Texas legislature bills can be found here.
Going through and understanding laws and bills can seem intimidating to some, but is important to all.
If you are interested in discussing politics and becoming a little more aware of the political world in Texas and the USA, try joining your local Young Americans for Freedom or High School Democrats of America, two organizations that also have chapters here at Lamar Academy.
Sources:
...And the respective Texas Legislature Online pages for each of the Bills mentioned.
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