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Florida open carry bill shoots through house committee

Mike

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http://www.sunshinestatenews.com/story/open-carry-bill-shoots-through-house-committee

SNIP

The Florida House Judiciary Committee paved the way for open carry Thursday, approving a measure to legalize a bill allowing open carry-- the bill’s last stop before heading to the House floor -- by a vote of 12-4.

Only one Democrat, Rep. Michelle Rehwinkel Vasalinda, D-Tallahassee, voted to approve the measure.

HB 163, sponsored by Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Shalimar, would make it legal for concealed carry permit holders to carry their firearms in public. Anyone who willfully infringes on concealed weapons permit holders’ right to openly carry (like law enforcement officers) would face a $5,000 fine. Government entities who try to infringe upon the open carry rule could face an even higher penalty, $100,000.

Florida law currently prohibits open carry.

. . .
 
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randian

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Love the penalty clauses! God speed Florida!
They're only valuable if the offender is personally liable. If a police officer can just offload the penalty onto his department it's no deterrent at all. It's also no deterrent if municipal budgets are designed to include such costs up front, so you can pay for your own oppression via taxes.
 

qednick

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They're only valuable if the offender is personally liable. If a police officer can just offload the penalty onto his department it's no deterrent at all. It's also no deterrent if municipal budgets are designed to include such costs up front, so you can pay for your own oppression via taxes.

You might be right but it's better than a poke in the eye...and more than we got in Texas.
 

77zach

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All the republicans talked out of both sides of their mouth in the hearing. They had not done much research. It will be interesting if it gets more hearings in the anti gun senate.
 
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Mas49.56

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All the republicans talked out of both sides of their mouth in the hearing. They had not done much research. It will be interesting if it gets more hearings in the anti gun senate.

How many more committees does it have to pass in the senate? I hate getting my hopes up like 2011.
 

Raventai

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Dixie county, florida
I don't know how the Florida House and Senate rules but if it succeeds in the house general floor vote does the house bill then go to the Senate for a floor vote? Or do we have to get the companion senate bill through the Senate committees and floor vote to get to the governors desk?


Basically do we need both bills to pass or can one bill pass through both houses.
 

Grapeshot

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I don't know how the Florida House and Senate rules but if it succeeds in the house general floor vote does the house bill then go to the Senate for a floor vote? Or do we have to get the companion senate bill through the Senate committees and floor vote to get to the governors desk?


Basically do we need both bills to pass or can one bill pass through both houses.

One bill could get the job done.
 

Grapeshot

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Good deal, this bill still has a chance.

I hear the house floor vote is probably a yea, any ideas on state senate floor chances? Governor Scott has stated he will sign it, so the Florida senate is the main huddle?
Yep, they are huddling. :p
 

randian

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I hear the house floor vote is probably a yea, any ideas on state senate floor chances? Governor Scott has stated he will sign it, so the Florida senate is the main hurdle?
Portilla has reportedly been ordered to block it in Judiciary. Even if it would pass a floor vote it will never get there.
 

77zach

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And who, pray tell, is the one who "ordered" him to block it.

AD

It's not that he is ordered. He's an anti gun Commie from Cuba. Lots of other brown shirt republicans are content with the status quo and Portilla is willing to take the fall. I'd say OC has about a 5-10% of going through this session. Even if Portilla doesn't hear it, it can still go right to the senate floor. I'd say there is about a 1% chance Andy Gardiner would do that. He's also not very pro gun rights. There are only a few really pro gun senators.
 

randian

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And who, pray tell, is the one who "ordered" him to block it.
Senate President Andy Gardiner. Note that Portilla has already refused to schedule a hearing on campus carry, killing it. The man is a menace and a disgrace to the Republican party.
 

77zach

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Senate President Andy Gardiner. Note that Portilla has already refused to schedule a hearing on campus carry, killing it. The man is a menace and a disgrace to the Republican party.
I don't know about that. In any case, Gardiner is now the only chance for this session. Portilla just said he'd kill it unless OC were taken out of the OC bill.

Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk
 

randian

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Mar 10, 2011
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Right. Portilla is killing every gun bill that comes his way. Until he's removed or the senate stops pushing gun bills through his committee we'll never pass OC or campus carry (or any other loosening of carry restrictions). If the rumors are true that Gardiner is allied with him our chances dropped even more.
 
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