Legislature(2023 - 2024)
2023-05-01 House Journal
Full Journal pdf2023-05-01 House Journal Page 0897 HB 61 The following was read the second time: HOUSE BILL NO. 61 "An Act relating to restrictions on firearms and other weapons." 2023-05-01 House Journal Page 0898 with the: Journal Page CRA RPT 4DP 1DNP 1AM 444 FN1: ZERO(LAW) 444 STA RPT CS(STA) 5DP 2AM 766 FN1: ZERO(LAW) 766 Representative Saddler moved and asked unanimous consent that the following committee substitute be adopted in lieu of the original bill: CS FOR HOUSE BILL NO. 61(STA) (same title) There being no objection, it was so ordered. Representative Saddler moved and asked unanimous consent that Representative Patkotak be excused from a call of the House today. There being no objection, it was so ordered. Amendment No. 1 was offered by Representative Josephson: Page 1, line 1, following "weapons" (title amendment): Insert "; and relating to the protection of constitutional rights during a disaster emergency" Page 1, line 4: Delete "the right to keep and bear arms; disaster" Insert "certain constitutional rights and restrictions on firearms and other weapons during a disaster emergency" Page 1, line 8, through page 2, line 8: Delete all material and insert: "(1) relating to a firearm, a firearm part, a firearm accessory, ammunition, or other weapon for personal use if that order, proclamation, regulation, ordinance, or policy (A) forbids the possession, use, or transfer of a firearm, a firearm part, a firearm accessory, ammunition, or other weapon for personal use; (B) orders the seizure or confiscation of a firearm, a firearm part, a firearm accessory, ammunition, or other weapon for personal use; 2023-05-01 House Journal Page 0899 (C) places limits on the quantity of firearms, firearm parts, firearm accessories, ammunition, or other weapons for personal use that may be sold or serviced or places other restrictions on the sale or service of firearms, firearm parts, firearm accessories, ammunition, or other weapons for personal use; (D) unless a closure or limitation applies equally to all forms of commerce within a jurisdiction, closes or limits the operating hours of (i) an entity engaged in the sale or service of firearms, firearm parts, firearm accessories, ammunition, or other weapons for personal use; or (ii) an indoor or outdoor shooting range; (E) suspends or revokes a permit to carry a concealed handgun issued under AS 18.65.700, except as provided in AS 18.65.735 and 18.65.740; or (F) refuses to accept an application to carry a concealed handgun, provided the application contains the information required under AS 18.65.710; (2) closing a church, synagogue, mosque, temple, or other place of worship; (3) suppressing free speech, the freedom of the press, or the freedom of petition; (4) interfering with the prohibition on unreasonable search and seizure; (5) prohibiting the exercise of the privileges and immunities clause under art. IV, sec. 2, Constitution of the United States; (6) depriving people of the rights of life, liberty, or property without due process; (7) imprisoning a person for a debt; (8) suspending (A) equal protection of the law; (B) habeas corpus, except in cases of rebellion or public safety; (C) the right of a citizen to vote based on race, color, or gender; (D) the right of privacy; or (E) the right to a civil suit and trial by jury." 2023-05-01 House Journal Page 0900 Page 2, line 9: Delete "This section does " Insert "The provisions of (a)(1) of this section do" Page 2, line 14: Delete "(a) of this section, and the person is" Insert "(1) (a)(2) - (8) of this section; or (2) (a)(1) of this section and the person is" Page 2, line 15: Delete "(1)" Insert "(A)" Page 2, line 17: Delete "(2)" Insert "(B)" Page 2, line 18: Delete "(1) of this subsection" Insert "(A) of this paragraph" Representative Josephson moved and asked unanimous consent that Amendment No. 1 be adopted. Representative McCabe objected. The question being: "Shall Amendment No. 1 be adopted?" The roll was taken with the following result: CSHB 61(STA) Second Reading Amendment No. 1 YEAS: 16 NAYS: 23 EXCUSED: 1 ABSENT: 0 Yeas: Armstrong, Carrick, Dibert, Eastman, Fields, Galvin, Gray, Groh, Hannan, Himschoot, Josephson, Mears, Mina, Ortiz, Schrage, Story Nays: Allard, Carpenter, Coulombe, Cronk, Edgmon, Foster, C.Johnson, D.Johnson, McCabe, McCormick, McKay, Prax, Rauscher, Ruffridge, Saddler, Shaw, Stapp, Stutes, Sumner, Tilton, Tomaszewski, Vance, Wright 2023-05-01 House Journal Page 0901 Excused: Patkotak And so, Amendment No. 1 was not adopted. Amendment No. 2 was offered by Representative Eastman: Page 1, line 15, through page 2, line 1: Delete "unless the closure or limitation applies equally to all forms of commerce within the jurisdiction," Representative Eastman moved and asked unanimous consent that Amendment No. 2 be adopted. Representative McCabe objected. The question being: "Shall Amendment No. 2 be adopted?" The roll was taken with the following result: CSHB 61(STA) Second Reading Amendment No. 2 YEAS: 3 NAYS: 36 EXCUSED: 1 ABSENT: 0 Yeas: Eastman, Himschoot, Tomaszewski Nays: Allard, Armstrong, Carpenter, Carrick, Coulombe, Cronk, Dibert, Edgmon, Fields, Foster, Galvin, Gray, Groh, Hannan, C.Johnson, D.Johnson, Josephson, McCabe, McCormick, McKay, Mears, Mina, Ortiz, Prax, Rauscher, Ruffridge, Saddler, Schrage, Shaw, Stapp, Story, Stutes, Sumner, Tilton, Vance, Wright Excused: Patkotak And so, Amendment No. 2 was not adopted. Amendment No. 3 was offered by Representative Eastman: Page 2, line 16: Delete "or" Page 2, line 19, following "weapons": Insert "; or 2023-05-01 House Journal Page 0902 (3) an entity engaged in the sale or service of firearms, firearm parts, firearm accessories, ammunition, or other weapons for personal use" Representative Eastman moved and asked unanimous consent that Amendment No. 3 be adopted. Representative Cronk objected. The question being: "Shall Amendment No. 3 be adopted?" The roll was taken with the following result: CSHB 61(STA) Second Reading Amendment No. 3 YEAS: 1 NAYS: 38 EXCUSED: 1 ABSENT: 0 Yeas: Eastman Nays: Allard, Armstrong, Carpenter, Carrick, Coulombe, Cronk, Dibert, Edgmon, Fields, Foster, Galvin, Gray, Groh, Hannan, Himschoot, C.Johnson, D.Johnson, Josephson, McCabe, McCormick, McKay, Mears, Mina, Ortiz, Prax, Rauscher, Ruffridge, Saddler, Schrage, Shaw, Stapp, Story, Stutes, Sumner, Tilton, Tomaszewski, Vance, Wright Excused: Patkotak And so, Amendment No. 3 was not adopted. Amendment No. 4 was offered by Representative Eastman: Page 1, line 5: Delete "During" Insert "Notwithstanding" Representative Eastman moved and asked unanimous consent that Amendment No. 4 be adopted. Representative McCabe objected. 2023-05-01 House Journal Page 0903 The question being: "Shall Amendment No. 4 be adopted?" The roll was taken with the following result: CSHB 61(STA) Second Reading Amendment No. 4 YEAS: 1 NAYS: 38 EXCUSED: 1 ABSENT: 0 Yeas: Eastman Nays: Allard, Armstrong, Carpenter, Carrick, Coulombe, Cronk, Dibert, Edgmon, Fields, Foster, Galvin, Gray, Groh, Hannan, Himschoot, C.Johnson, D.Johnson, Josephson, McCabe, McCormick, McKay, Mears, Mina, Ortiz, Prax, Rauscher, Ruffridge, Saddler, Schrage, Shaw, Stapp, Story, Stutes, Sumner, Tilton, Tomaszewski, Vance, Wright Excused: Patkotak And so, Amendment No. 4 was not adopted. Amendment No. 5 was offered by Representative Carrick: Page 1, line 1, following "Act" (title amendment): Insert "relating to misconduct involving weapons in the fourth degree; establishing the offense of misconduct involving weapons in the sixth degree; and" Page 1, following line 2: Insert new bill sections to read: "* Section 1. The uncodified law of the State of Alaska is amended by adding a new section to read: SHORT TITLE. Sections 1 - 3 of this Act may be known as the Alaska Child Access Prevention and Secure Storage of Firearms Act. * Sec. 2. AS 11.61.210(a) is amended to read: (a) A person commits the crime of misconduct involving weapons in the fourth degree if the person (1) possesses on the person, or in the interior of a vehicle in which the person is present, a firearm when the person's physical or mental condition is impaired as a result of the introduction of an intoxicating liquor or a controlled substance into the person's body in circumstances other than described in AS 11.61.200(a)(7); 2023-05-01 House Journal Page 0904 (2) discharges a firearm from, on, or across a highway; (3) discharges a firearm with reckless disregard for a risk of damage to property or a risk of physical injury to a person under circumstances other than those described in AS 11.61.195(a)(3)(A); (4) manufactures, possesses, transports, sells, or transfers metal knuckles; (5) sells or transfers a switchblade or a gravity knife to a person under 18 years of age without the prior written consent of the person's parent or guardian; (6) knowingly sells a firearm or a defensive weapon to a person under 18 years of age; (7) other than a preschool, elementary, junior high, or secondary school student, knowingly possesses a deadly weapon or a defensive weapon, without the permission of the chief administrative officer of the school or district or the designee of the chief administrative officer, within the buildings of, on the grounds of, or on the school parking lot of a public or private preschool, elementary, junior high, or secondary school, on a school bus while being transported to or from school or a school- sponsored event, or while participating in a school-sponsored event, except that a person 21 years of age or older may possess (A) a deadly weapon, other than a loaded firearm, in the trunk of a motor vehicle or encased in a closed container in a motor vehicle; (B) a defensive weapon; (C) an unloaded firearm if the person is traversing school premises in a rural area for the purpose of entering public or private land that is open to hunting and the school board with jurisdiction over the school premises has elected to have this exemption apply to the school premises; in this subparagraph, "rural" means a community with a population of 5,500 or less that is not connected by road or rail to Anchorage or Fairbanks or with a population of 1,500 or less that is connected by road or rail to Anchorage or Fairbanks; [OR] (8) being a preschool, elementary, junior high, or secondary school student, knowingly possesses a deadly weapon or a defensive weapon, within the buildings of, on the grounds of, or on the school parking lot of a public or private preschool, 2023-05-01 House Journal Page 0905 elementary, junior high, or secondary school, on a school bus while being transported to or from school or a school-sponsored event, or while participating in a school-sponsored event, except that a student may possess a deadly weapon, other than a firearm as defined under 18 U.S.C. 921, or a defensive weapon if the student has obtained the prior permission of the chief administrative officer of the school or district or the designee of the chief administrative officer for the possession; or (9) violates AS 11.61.225 and, as a result of the violation, an individual under 18 years of age or a prohibited person uses the firearm to commit a crime or injure self or another; in this paragraph, "prohibited person" has the meaning given in AS 11.61.225(b). * Sec. 3. AS 11.61 is amended by adding a new section to read: Sec. 11.61.225. Misconduct involving weapons in the sixth degree. (a) A person commits the offense of misconduct involving weapons in the sixth degree if the person (1) keeps on a premises a firearm that is not carried by, or otherwise under the control of, the owner or an authorized person; and (2) knows or reasonably should know that an individual under 18 years of age, who is not an owner or authorized person, or a prohibited person is able to gain access to a firearm owned or under the control of the person and the person fails to secure the firearm in a locked container, with a gun lock, or by other means to render the firearm inaccessible or unable to be used by a person who is not the owner or an authorized person. (b) In this section, (1) "authorized person" means a person granted permission by the owner or a person in possession of a firearm to carry or control the firearm on a temporary basis while in the presence of the owner or person in possession; (2) "control" means a firearm is within a proximity of the owner or an authorized person that allows the owner or authorized person to (A) retrieve and use the firearm in the same manner as if the firearm were carried on the person of the owner or authorized person; and (B) prevent another person who is not an authorized person from obtaining the firearm; 2023-05-01 House Journal Page 0906 (3) "locked container" means a storage device approved, or that meets specifications established by, the Department of Public Safety; (4) "prohibited person" means a person who is prohibited from possessing a firearm under 18 U.S.C. 922(g) or by state law. (c) Misconduct involving weapons in the sixth degree is a violation punishable by a fine of not more than $1,000." Page 1, line 3: Delete "Section 1" Insert "Sec. 4" Renumber the following bill section accordingly. Page 3, following line 5: Insert a new bill section to read: "* Sec. 6. The uncodified law of the State of Alaska is amended by adding a new section to read: APPLICABILITY. AS 11.61.210(a), as amended by sec. 2 of this Act, and AS 11.61.225, enacted by sec. 3 of this Act, apply to offenses committed on or after the effective date of this Act." Representative Carrick moved and asked unanimous consent that Amendment No. 5 be adopted. Representative C. Johnson objected and moved and asked unanimous consent to table Amendment No. 5. There was objection. The question being: "Shall Amendment No. 5 be tabled?" The roll was taken with the following result: CSHB 61(STA) Second Reading Amendment No. 5/Table YEAS: 21 NAYS: 18 EXCUSED: 1 ABSENT: 0 Yeas: Allard, Carpenter, Coulombe, Cronk, Edgmon, Foster, C.Johnson, D.Johnson, McCabe, McKay, Prax, Rauscher, Ruffridge, Saddler, Shaw, Stapp, Sumner, Tilton, Tomaszewski, Vance, Wright 2023-05-01 House Journal Page 0907 Nays: Armstrong, Carrick, Dibert, Eastman, Fields, Galvin, Gray, Groh, Hannan, Himschoot, Josephson, McCormick, Mears, Mina, Ortiz, Schrage, Story, Stutes Excused: Patkotak And so, Amendment No. 5 was tabled. Representative Saddler moved and asked unanimous consent that CSHB 61(STA) be considered engrossed, advanced to third reading, and placed on final passage. There was objection. CSHB 61(STA) will advance to third reading on the May 3 calendar.