/johnny
Posted on 04/14/2015 4:18:59 PM PDT by smokingfrog
AUSTIN Two of the legislative session’s highest-profile bills were temporarily derailed by technical glitches Tuesday — one to allow Texans to openly carry holstered handguns and the other to limit local restrictions on hydraulic fracturing.
Opponents of both measures say any delay gives them hope that they can kill the bills. But supporters dismiss that as wishful thinking, saying this is not even close to a death sentence for the proposals.
“It’s just delaying the inevitable,” said Rep. Matt Krause, R-Fort Worth. “I think both will still pass, according to the mood of the floor.”
Both bills were sent back to committee and quickly reapproved. They are expected back on the House floor as early as Friday.
At issue Tuesday was how part of the legislative process was handled.
Rep. Trey Martinez Fischer, D-San Antonio, questioned whether witnesses who testified on the bill to allow licensed Texans to openly carry handguns were properly registered and recorded.
Some witnesses who signed up to testify changed their mind during the hearing, and changed their position, he said, but that wasn’t reflected in electronic records of the House Homeland Security and Public Safety Committee.
Others say a glitch in the system affected more than 100 bills, misrepresenting witnesses’ positions.
(Excerpt) Read more at star-telegram.com ...
House Bill 910 would let Texans openly carry holstered handguns if they have a license.
Supporters say the measure is long overdue and would bring the state in line with much of the rest of the country. Opponents say it’s a bad idea because openly carrying handguns could intimidate many Texans.
Joe Straus have something to do with these delays??
But I'll take it for the nervous nellies that can't bring themselves to obey the Constitution as written.
And continue to push for Constitutional Carry.
/johnny
I don't like the license requirement, but it's a step in the right direction. Do we need allow allowing free speech by those who have a license? I was going to use freedom of religion as an example, but that God-given right is almost as endangered as the Second Amendment.
Opponents say it’s a bad idea because openly carrying handguns could intimidate many Texans.
There may be some foreigners (Californians and New Yorkers) who have moved to Texas and would be intimidated, but seeing a real gun would never intimidate a Texan.
LOL!
Texas currently has rotten carry laws. Its sad when such “comservative” states like Vermont, NH, and Maine have gun laws that are orders of magnitude better than those in Texas.
I’m amazed that open carry is even a question in Texas.
When it comes to gun laws, Texas is All Hat, No Cattle.
Someone needs to be in Austin to keep our viewpoint alive for the legislators. Even if this passes. Especially if this passes.
/johnny
You are welcome to join those fighting for Constitutional rights, instead of lip service that the GOP-E currently gives them.
/johnny
“There may be some foreigners (Californians and New Yorkers) who have moved to Texas and would be intimidated, but seeing a real gun would never intimidate a Texan.”
I should hope not. You can open carry in the Vrirginia portion of the beltway and not get a second glance. And yes, I speak from personal experience. Yet it’s controversial in Texas? Really?
/johnny
There may be some...Californianians.and New Yorkers... who are intimidated...”
Growing up in Texas, it was common to see rifles and shotguns in pickup truck gun racks by the cab’s back window. No one was scared by the sight of those.
“You are welcome to join those fighting for Constitutional rights, instead of lip service that the GOP-E currently gives them.
/johnny”
Got that taken care of. Let’s just say I have more than a “passing interest” in gun politics here in Virginny.
FWIW, the delay today was a technical mistake which gave opponents an excuse to delay.
But the committee fixed the problem in record time and it is supposed to be taken up Friday.
There is some progress here fixing our gun laws, but it’s quite incremental thanks in large part to the deplorable Speaker of the House.
I was thinking today we need a grass root effort to amend the TX Constitution so that the Speaker would become an office that is subject to statewide election like Lt. Gov.
We have so many good bills that pass the state senate but never get heard in the House.
But either way, Strauss needs gone. He's a liberal. That's enough to primary him. That he's also speaker just makes it a little more urgent.
/johnny
Yea he definitely needs to go.
/johnny
No mention of the anti-gun gorilla in the room, Joe Straus.
Straus is the current Speaker of the Texas House of Representatives. While nominally a Republican, he is in fact a liberal Democrat. He has been repeatedly elected speaker by a small cadre of Republicans loyal to him joining with *all* the Democrats to elect him.
He has repeatedly blocked gun liberty bills, by not not allowing them to be voted on by the entire house.
/johnny
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