The day after the Texas Senate voted to loosen state handgun regulations, a House committee Tuesday morning considered proposals to allow the open carry of handguns with a license and the concealed carry of handguns on college campuses.
The House Committee on Homeland Security and Public Safety listened to public testimony on House Bill 937 by state Rep. Allen Fletcher, R-Cypress, which would allow students to carry concealed handguns on a college campus, and House Bill 910 by Committee Chairman Larry Phillips, R-Sherman, which would allow concealed handgun license owners to openly carry a handgun in public. The committee, which did not vote on either bill, was expected to convene again Tuesday afternoon.
An open carry bill similar to House Bill 910 was approved by the Senate 20 to 11 on Monday after several hours of debate. A University of Texas/Texas Tribune poll last month found a large majority of Texans are opposed to open carry with or without a license.
At a Capitol hearing Tuesday, Suzanna Gratia Hupp, a former Republican state representative, spoke in favor of the campus gun measure.
“If I’m a madman that wants to rack up a big body-bag count and beat the last guy’s body-bag count, I’m not going to go to an NRA convention or the dreaded gun show,” Hupp said. “I’m going to go where the Legislature has said people can’t protect themselves.”
Grace Chimene, a board member of the League of Women Voters of Texas, testified against both bills.
“College students and professors should have complete freedom of speech to express opinions during lectures without the intimidation that is present when guns are in the room,” Chimene said.
This article originally appeared in The Texas Tribune at http://www.texastribune.org/2015/03/17/house-committee-takes-open-campus-carry-bills/.