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CHARLESTON -- An effort to skip the House Finance Committee for a bill that would allow students to carry concealed firearms on college campuses was reversed Thursday after a huge fiscal note was dropped on the bill.
The House of Delegates approved a motion Thursday to send House Bill 2519, the Campus Self Defense Act, to the House Finance Committee.
HB 2519, introduced by Del. Jim Butler, R-Mason, would allow a college student with a concealed weapon permit to carry a firearm on a college campus, where carrying weapons is usually prohibited.
The bill was originally only sent to the House Judiciary Committee, but when judiciary committee members approved the bill, they made a motion to send it to the finance committee. The Higher Education Policy Commission submitted a fiscal note, estimating it would cost the state's colleges and universities $10.3 million in the beginning and $11.6 million in its first full year.
Wednesday night, House Majority Leader Amy Summers, R-Taylor, made a motion to dispense with the second committee reference, which would have sent the bill directly to the floor. Over the objections of House Judiciary Committee Chairman John Shott, the motion from Summers was adopted 51-47.
On Thursday, the House reversed itself and adopted a motion from Shott by voice vote to send the bill to the finance committee after all.
"Our committee was pretty serious when we received the fiscal note...that it be referred to the committee on finance to look at that," Shott said. "I know there is a great deal of skepticism about fiscal notes, but we're dealing with our colleges and universities. A $10 million fiscal note is not an insignificant amount, certainly not where I come from."
"While there was some skepticism on the fiscal note, I feel that (Shott) is very concerned about this," Summers said, reversing herself and agreeing with Shott's motion.
Several delegates rose to oppose the motion, including Del. Pat McGeehan, R-Hancock, who was removed by House Speaker Roger Hanshaw, R-Clay, from the judiciary committee at the request of Shott this week.
"With all due respect (Shott), I'm going to have to oppose this motion," McGeehan said. "I see no reason to send it to finance at all. I think it's a fictional fiscal note."
While the state Community and Technical College System is still studying the bill, the bill has raised red flags with colleges and universities. These institutions believe they will need to spend more money on "additional police officers, security guards, protective gear, weapons, metal detectors, vehicles, body cams, lockers, security cameras, door locks, emergency dispatch equipment, and training." The fiscal note also says colleges and universities expect decreased enrollment if the bill passes.
The bill has the support of pro-gun groups, such as the Citizens Defense League and the National Rifle Association.
"HB 2519 would ensure that law-abiding adults are not stripped of their right to self-defense when they cross an arbitrary boundary onto a college campus," according to the NRA Institute for Legislative Action website. "Adults who are officially licensed to carry a firearm for self-defense off-campus should not be prevented from doing so just because they seek higher education."
West Virginia is an open-carry state, meaning a concealed weapon permit is not needed to carry a firearm, though many still apply for permits to be able to legally carry a weapon across state lines. The bill wouldn't allow anyone to carry on a campus, just students who have a concealed carry permit.
The state's two largest universities are still concerned. Lobbyists for West Virginia University have been working lawmakers over the bill's provisions, and Marshall University has taken a stance on the bill.
"Marshall University remains steadfast in its opposition to guns on college campuses," said Marshall University President Jerome Gilbert. "The safety and security of our students, faculty and staff is of paramount importance to us and this legislation threatens the very foundation of that responsibility. I am opposed and remain opposed to guns on campus."