Hopes were high among Arizona gun-rights activists earlier this year when Janet Napolitano left the Governor’s Office for a position as secretary of Homeland Security in Washington, D.C. After all, many state bills that would have loosened gun restrictions were near sure-shootin’ vetoes while the Democrat occupied the Ninth Floor.
During her last four years in office alone, Napolitano vetoed eight bills that would have loosened firearms restrictions.
Now, with a Republican in the state’s top spot for the first time since 2002, 18 bills have been introduced this session in both chambers concerning firearms regulation, some of which are reincarnated or reworked forms of formerly vetoed legislation.
However, only four firearms-related bills have passed through a committee, all of them in the House. No gun-related bills have yet been assigned hearings in the Senate. Lawmakers agree that a focus on the budget has delayed action on most policy bills, including gun legislation.
Among such sedentary legislation is H2171, sponsored by Rep. Frank Antenori, a Republican from Tucson, which would allow persons with a proper permit to carry a gun into certain establishments that hold liquor licenses — namely restaurants and hotels.
The bill, which has the backing of the National Rifle Association, would apply to establishments that collect at least
50 percent of their revenue from food sales (Right now, Arizona statute defines a restaurant as only deriving at least 40 percent of its revenue from food). In other words, the place cannot be primarily a bar.
The legislation seeks to overturn a prohibition of firearms in establishments that hold liquor licenses. The law became an issue this month, triggered by plans that the National Rifle Association’s 138th annual national convention would be staged May 14-17 at the Phoenix Convention Center.
The Convention Center has the same type of liquor license as privately owned bars, which allows them to serve all types of liquor. The Convention Center had to suspend its license in order to allow NRA members to carry and display firearms in certain areas of the complex. A gun-check service will be provided in the few reception areas where alcohol will be served.
Under H2171, firearms would still be prohibited in bars where alcohol is the primary source of revenue. Restaurant owners would be allowed to opt out of allowing weapons by posting signs at entrances.
“You, as a private property owner, have the right to post a sign: ‘I don’t want guns in here,’” Antenori said. “With the exception of restaurants, every single establishment in Arizona requires prohibitive signs.”
Right now, Arizona law requires concealed weapons permit holders to leave their weapons behind when entering most establishments that sell alcoholic beverages. Antenori said there are many poorly lit areas in cities, particularly due to noise and light ordinances in Pima County, which leaves law-abiding people without proper protection.
“This (bill) allows someone to defend themselves,” Antenori said, explaining that the main purpose of the bill is to allow concealed weapons permit holders to arm themselves on the way from their car to the restaurant and back to their car again at the end of a night out.
“It isn’t going to be where you can go into a bar, get drunk and shoot the place up,” Antenori added. In fact, the bill specifically prohibits someone carrying a firearm from consuming alcohol while in a restaurant.
The bill was referred to the House Commerce and Judiciary committees on Jan. 20, but it has not advanced to the floor as budget discussions dominate the session.
Antenori said his bill has the support of many lawmakers, the NRA and Republican Gov. Jan Brewer.
In 2005, the infamously named “Guns in Bars Bill,” passed both chambers of the Legislature, but it was vetoed when it reached Napolitano’s desk. In her veto letter, Napolitano cited safety concerns from both law enforcement and restaurant owners. The 2005 bill would have allowed guns in bars and restaurants that serve alcohol, unless the establishment had posted signs prohibiting firearms.
Sen. Jack Harper, a Republican from Surprise who was the primary sponsor of the 2005 bill, introduced another measure this session that would only require restaurants that have liquor licenses and do not wish to allow firearms to post signs prohibiting them on the premises. Firearms would still be prohibited in bars.
Also, the bill would restrict people with guns from drinking and would not compel business owners to permit firearms, allowing owners full discretion. It “allows them to allow” firearms in their establishment, in Harper’s words. However, S1113 has yet to be assigned to a committee.
Harper said the NRA had hoped the bill would pass both chambers in time for the governor to sign it at their upcoming national convention.
“A stronger bill (S1363) passed the Legislature (in 2005) with bipartisan support,” Harper said when asked if he thought this bill could pass. He was referring to his 2005 measure that would have allowed guns in establishments where most or all revenue was derived from alcohol. But all policy bills have been put on hold until the budget is resolved.
Although most gun bills likely will have to wait until the budget is passed, there has been committee action on some. Among the most active bills is H2474, which would allow people who own a firearm to keep their weapon in their car while parked at work or in other private parking areas. After more than an hour of debate, H2474 received preliminary approval during a Committee of the Whole session May 7. Arizona law, the way it’s written now, allows business owners and owners of private parking areas to prohibit the storage of guns in cars.
H2474 also is supported by the NRA, and several other states are looking at similar legislation, said Rep. John Kavanagh, a Republican from Fountain Hills who is the prime sponsor of the legislation.
Several House Democrats spoke out against the bill, saying the idea is half-cocked.
Rep. Kyrsten Sinema, a Democrat from Phoenix, opposed the bill due to concerns that the rights of private property owners would give way to the rights of gun owners, especially in the cases of child daycare centers and private facilities that handle nuclear materials.
“Private property owners should have the right to make decisions about how they will protect their property,” Sinema said.
Antenori, who co-sponsored the bill with Kavanagh, said the main goal is to allow individuals to be armed when driving between home and work, calling it “common-sense legislation to provide individual rights.” The bill would maintain a property owner’s right to specify that the car must be locked and the gun kept out of view.
“Speaking on behalf of all gun owners — the hunters, those who want to protect themselves and their families and pretty much everybody that laid their butt on the line to protect people like … Miss Sinema — I support this bill and I will vote for it,” Antenori said during the floor debate.
Another bill involving vehicles and firearms, H2420, carried by Rep. Barbara McGuire, a Democrat from Kearny, and supported by some members of both parties, would allow a properly permitted person to carry a firearm in a closed purse while riding in a vehicle without facing charges of misconduct with a weapon.
The bill would extend the definition of storage locations in a vehicle to include purses along with locat
ions already allowed, including glove boxes, trunks, and map pouches. The bill was referred to the House Judiciary Committee, but has not advanced.
Kavanagh has sponsored another bill, H2439, which would revise procedures for obtaining a concealed weapons permit. The bill passed the House on May 6, and was sent to the Senate.
H2566, sponsored by Phoenix Republican Rep. Adam Driggs, would provide new protection against charges of weapons misconduct for private security personnel at nuclear plants and removal of noise ordinances for their outdoor shooting practice ranges. It also has passed a House committee.
Security personnel at the Palo Verde Nuclear Generating Station already operate an outdoor shooting range in accordance with federal law, Driggs said. They were seeking to be “fully compliant” with state law, including any possible noise ordinances.
Even in a state called “gun country” by some gun-rights activists and host of this year’s NRA meeting, Arizona’s budget-focused Legislature is likely to keep most of this session’s gun bills holstered for now.≠