JACKSON, Ms. — It’s guns versus college football in a dispute over where certain Mississippi residents can carry firearms.
At issue is House Bill 1083, which would void rules limiting where some people are allowed to carry guns on public property. House Judiciary A Committee Chairman Andy Gipson, the bill’s sponsor, says all it does is remove illegal rules that universities, judges and others have erected to bar guns. But universities say guns in stadiums could lead to opponents refusing to play in Mississippi and guns in dormitories could alarm parents.
The bill passed the House 80-29 Wednesday. It was held for the possibility of more debate and will have to pass the state Senate.
The root of the dispute is a law passed in 2011 that’s supposed to let people carry guns almost anywhere on public property after taking a training course and getting an enhanced concealed carry license. Universities have interpreted the law to say they can define public spaces, and have mostly excluded sports venues, dormitories, classrooms. Judges and counties have also reacted negatively to allowing people to carry guns everywhere except an active courtroom, with many still enforcing blanket bans on guns anywhere in a courthouse.
Gipson, a Braxton Republican, says he’s tired of what he sees as defiance of the law. His bill creates a process to challenge bans. The attorney general’s office would have to investigate written complaints within 30 days. If the agency didn’t stop violating the law, a person could then sue.
“We gave them seven years to fix this,” Gipson said. “I understand they don’t like the law, but the bottom line is this has been the law for a long time.”
But universities are reacting negatively to the bill. Southeastern Conference Commissioner Greg Sankey sent a letter Wednesday saying the conference wants sports venues exempted from the law.
