SB 176-REG. OF FIREARMS/KNIVES BY UNIVERSITY  2:19:09 PM CHAIR COGHILL announced the consideration of SB 176."An Act relating to the regulation of firearms and knives by the University of Alaska." This was the second hearing. HANS RODVIK, Intern, Senator John Coghill, sponsor of SB 176, informed the committee that Brian Judy was available to testify. 2:20:35 PM BRIAN JUDY, Alaska State Liaison, National Rifle Association (NRA), Sacramento, California, testified in support of SB 176. He opened his testimony with several questions and stated that SB 176 simply erases arbitrary lines that require different standards. He said the Alaska Constitution recognizes that self- defense is a fundamental preexisting right and SB 176 is about law abiding citizens being able to provide self-protection on both sides of that arbitrary line. He pointed out the problems with the idea that defense ought to be left up to the professionals: 1) it can take law enforcement too long to respond; and 2) the courts have ruled that police are responsible for protecting society at large, not individuals. He cited mass killings in recent years perpetrated in gun-free zones as evidence that gun-free school zones are a public policy failure. He said this comes as no surprise to those who support the individual right to keep and bear arms and the right to provide a means of personal defense. He said it's astounding that many people don't grasp the simple truth that criminals don't obey gun laws or designated gun-free zones, because the reality is that only potential victims are gun free in gun-free zones. 2:23:49 PM He described the arguments that were made during a previous committee hearing as predictable scare tactics designed to derail the bill. He said the hypotheticals that were posed are similar to hypotheticals of horror that the legislature has heard every time firearm legislation has been introduced in the past 20 years, but they've never materialized. MR. JUDY stressed that the majority of people on campuses are law abiding and they currently don't have an opportunity to protect themselves, just as the victims at Virginia Tech didn't have an opportunity. The Virginia Legislature considered, but didn't pass, similar legislation just before the attack. That lack of action ensured those individuals were sitting ducks, he said. The bottom line is that SB 176 is intended to erase the arbitrary lines and make the laws uniform both off and on campus. It's a matter of common sense, he said. 2:29:36 PM SENATOR DYSON asked if he had statistics to show that more children have died from accidents like drowning than from firearms. MR. JUDY replied he didn't have the statistics in hand, but that is generally true. CHAIR COGHILL asked Mr. Rodvik if he had compiled that information. MR. RODVIK replied he posted to BASIS some statistics provided by the Gun Owners Association including that, in a four-year period, twice as many children are killed playing football in school compared to the number of students who were murdered by firearms during that same period. 2:31:58 PM SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI asked Mr. Judy to talk about the experiences in states like Utah that have similar laws. MR. JUDY said Utah has allowed the possession of firearms on campuses for about ten years and there has never been a gun violence incident. He offered to provide a copy of the letter that the Utah attorney general wrote when Nevada was considering similar legislation. SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI indicated interest in receiving a copy. CHAIR COGHILL said he would distribute copies of the letter. 2:34:04 PM SENATOR OLSON asked his experience with guns that accidentally go off in public forums. MR. JUDY said the fact is that firearms accidents are relatively rare compared to other types of accidental harm. The empirical evidence across the states is the same; there are virtually no accidents associated with law-abiding citizens carrying firearms. He cited military recruiting on campus and stressed that people who can be trusted to carry firearms in defense of the country should be trusted to carry a firearm in their own defense. SENATOR OLSON commented that his experience in school was that many students shouldn't be trusted with a firearm. He added that he didn't believe that the bill with the concealed provision was relevant to the Virginia Tech example. MR. JUDY agreed that the responsible way to carry a firearm for self-protection is in a holster and concealed. Perhaps the legislature will want to tighten this law at some point to ensure certain, more responsible ways to carry, he said. 2:40:32 PM SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI asked if there have been challenges under the Alaska Constitution to the individual right to carry anywhere including a university campus. MR. JUDY said not to his knowledge. 2:42:44 PM CEEZAR MARTINSON, Vice President, UAA Political Science Association, University of Alaska-Anchorage, Anchorage, Alaska, testified in support of SB 176. He said Article 1, Section 19 of the Alaska Constitution is very clear that neither the state nor any political subdivision can violate the individual right to keep and bear arms, and the university policy regarding concealed carry on campus is in direct contradiction. He stressed that it is time for the legislature to correct the inequity that the university policy creates. MIKE COONS, representing himself, Palmer, Alaska, testified in support of SB 176. He disagreed with the points that President Gamble made when he testified in a previous hearing. He maintained that the testimony was designed to create emotion and hide facts. 2:47:24 PM MONTANA WARE, President, Young Americans for Liberty (YAL), Anchorage, Alaska, testified in support of SB 176. He questioned the logic of the signs that prohibit guns on campus and pointed out that this policy violates Article 1, Section 9 of the Alaska Constitution. He said he considers it his right to have the means to protect himself under any threatening circumstances, and believes that the UAA policy potentially puts lawful students in an unnecessarily unfavorable position. It is pertinent to the incident at Virginia Tech; with a bill like SB 176, any victims or potential victim would have had an opportunity to stop the gunman before he hurt many other students. He thanked Senator Coghill and his staff for taking steps to make Alaskans feel secure and protecting the right to self-defense. SENATOR DYSON voiced exception to Mr. Coons' remarks about President Gamble and encouraged everyone to be respectful. CHAIR COGHILL echoed the comment, with the caveat that it should not dampen passion. 2:51:07 PM MATTHEW CARBERRY, representing himself, Anchorage, Alaska, testified in support of SB 176. He referenced the question about whether the university policy had been challenged and offered his opinion that there is a strong case that the university policy violates both the state and federal constitutions. He cited recent Ninth Circuit Court opinions that say government agencies can't utterly abrogate the right to carry and noted that the same right exists under the state constitution. By comparison, the Board of Regents' grant of authority is limited to adopting reasonable rules, orders and plans for good governance of the university and regulation of the Board of Regents. Clearly, the university doesn't have a legal leg to stand on; their position is weak and has been dependent on no one challenging it, he said. MR. CARBERRY indicated he would submit written testimony. 2:56:41 PM MICHAEL BUCKLAND, representing himself, Anchorage, Alaska, said he's a lifelong Alaskan, decorated Vietnam veteran, and tenured professor at UAA who strongly supports SB 176. He has taught for 25 years and doesn't feel threatened by the idea that his students and other law-abiding Alaskans will have weapons. The fact is that horrible shootings happen in zones that are effectively gun-free, he said. He concluded that public safety will be enhanced with this legislation, because a good guy with a gun will be able to stop the bad guy with a gun. CHAIR COGHILL said public testimony would be taken again on Monday. He held SB 176 in committee.