GUNS/HOUSE OF REPS: “A House committee advanced legislation Wednesday [11-29-17] that would allow Americans who legally carry concealed guns in their home states to travel anywhere in the U.S. with their firearms, overriding state laws that tightly restrict who can bear arms in public.
The House Judiciary Committee’s 19-11 vote, along party lines, marked Congress’s first action on firearm legislation since a gunman killed 58 people at an Oct. 1 music festival in Las Vegas and a shooter in Texas opened fire at a church on Nov. 5, killing 26 people.
GOP leaders told Rep. Richard Hudson (R., N.C.), the bill’s sponsor, that the legislation would get a vote on the House floor before the end of the year, potentially as soon as next week, according to a House GOP aide. Securing the 60 votes needed to clear the Senate will be much tougher. Republicans hold 52 of the chamber’s seats.
The Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act, described by the National Rifle Association as a priority, would smooth over gaps in state laws, providing gun owners consistency and certainty when they travel, its supporters said. At the moment, some states recognize out-of-state permits to carry concealed guns through reciprocity agreements, but many don’t.”
-Joe Palazzolo, “House Committee Advances Plan to Ease Gun-Carrying Restrictions,” The Wall Street Journal online, Nov. 29, 2017 06:00am