02/24/2009 09:00 AM Senate STATE AFFAIRS

               SJR  6-OPPOSE H.R. 45 IN CONGRESS                                                                            
                                                                                                                                
9:04:50 AM                                                                                                                    
CHAIR MENARD announced the consideration of SJR 6.                                                                              
                                                                                                                                
DAVE STANCLIFF,  Staff to Senator  Gene Therriault,  Alaska State                                                               
Legislature, said  SJR6 deals  with gun control.  The topic  is a                                                               
result  of the  ever-growing  level of  violence  in our  nation.                                                               
Proponents  believe  that  changing  laws  will  change  people's                                                               
behavior with regard  to gun violence. They believe  that it will                                                               
change bad people. "The actual  result, of course, is law-abiding                                                               
people obey laws,  and law-breakers do not."  Gun control removes                                                               
the ability  "to protect oneself from  law-abiding citizens while                                                               
those  who threaten  those citizen  have  less and  less fear  of                                                               
retaliation when they use their guns to assault their victims."                                                                 
                                                                                                                                
9:06:25 AM                                                                                                                    
MR. STANCLIFF  said HR 45 [Congressional  legislation referred to                                                               
as  Blair Holt's  Firearm Licensing  and  Record of  Sale Act  of                                                               
2009] is  not a  benign threat  to those  who support  the second                                                               
amendment.  "At  the  very  least,  it is  a  potent  message  to                                                               
Americans  that the  desire  to  control guns  is  ... alive  and                                                               
well."  It is  a  rallying point  for those  who  believe in  gun                                                               
control. It  is not  something that should  be ignored,  "as such                                                               
ignorance sends a signal to those  who support such ideas." SJR 6                                                               
counters that signal. It will  clearly indicate that Alaskans, by                                                               
and  large, do  not support  gun control  nor do  they appreciate                                                               
methods to do so. "What we  tolerate we encourage." SJR 6 may not                                                               
have an overwhelming  affect, but it states  how little tolerance                                                               
that  Alaskans   have  for  such  measures.   Senator  Therriault                                                               
acknowledges  that HR  45 doesn't  have a  cosponsor, and  it has                                                               
been  introduced  before  and  "has   gone  nowhere."  "From  the                                                               
reaction that  it has gotten from  his district, and if  you read                                                               
the  papers,  the things  that  are  going  on in  Fairbanks  and                                                               
various  places   in  the  state,   the  more  quickly   ...  the                                                               
legislature sends  a message  on behalf of  the people,  the more                                                               
appreciated it will be."                                                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
9:08:44 AM                                                                                                                    
SENATOR MEYER  asked if a copy  should go to the  president, "not                                                               
that he cares what we think up here."                                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
MR.  STANCLIFF said  the drafters  determine that.  If it  is not                                                               
violating some unspoken principle, it would be wise.                                                                            
                                                                                                                                
SENATOR  MEYER  said  there  was   a  resolution  yesterday  that                                                               
included the president.                                                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
9:09:54 AM                                                                                                                    
SENATOR  PASKVAN  said  he  believes  it  is  sent  to  the  vice                                                               
president because he votes in the event of a tie.                                                                               
                                                                                                                                
SENATOR FRENCH said  if HR 45 passed, President  Obama could veto                                                               
it, so "you might want to make him aware of it."                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
9:10:47 AM                                                                                                                    
SENATOR MEYER  moved to adopt  Amendment 1, to  include President                                                               
Barack Obama  in line  23. There being  no objection,  the motion                                                               
carried.                                                                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
SENATOR MEYER moved  to report SJR 6 [as  amended] from committee                                                               
with  individual recommendations  and accompanying  fiscal notes.                                                               
Hearing no objection, CSSJR 6(STA) passed out of committee.