WV: Governor Tomblin Vetoes Constitutional Carry, Again!

By Dean Weingarten

Arizona – -(Ammoland.com)-
As shown on the West Virginia legislative page, Governor Tomblin has vetoed the Constitutional carry bill for the second year in a row.  Last year, 2015, Governor Tomblin vetoed a Constitutional carry bill after the legislature had adjourned. Today, 3 March, 2016, another Constitutional carry bill, HB 4145 was recorded as vetoed. From state.wv.us:

The West Virginia legislature can override his veto with simple majorities in both houses.  From wv.us:

Action by the Governor 

After a bill passes both chambers in the same form, it is sent to the governor. While the Legislature is in session, the governor has five days to approve or veto a bill he or she receives. After the Legislature adjourns, the governor has 15 days to act on most bills. However, the budget bill and supplemental appropriations bills must be acted upon by the governor within five days regardless of when they are received. If the governor does not act within these time limits, bills automatically become law without his or her signature.

Overriding a Veto

 If the Legislature is still in session when the governor vetoes a bill, a simple majority vote of the members of both legislative bodies is necessary to override the veto. In cases when a budget bill or supplemental appropriation bill is vetoed, a two-thirds vote of the members of both houses is needed to override the veto.

The West Virgina Legislature has until 12 March to override Governor Tomblin’s veto.  That is six working days from now.  The bill passed with overwhelming support.  68-31 in the House, 24-9 in the Senate.  Now we will see if the legislators really meant it when they voted for Constitutional carry.  As noted in the West Virginia legislative procedures above, only a simple majority is needed in the votes to override this veto.  It is expected that the legislature will do so.  We do not have many days to wait to find out.

Constitutional carry refers to the state of law at the time the Second Amendment and the entire Bill of Rights was ratified, on December 15th, 1791.  At that time there were no restrictions on the carry of arms; openly, or concealed.  State laws are approximations of this, with some having minor restrictions for age, mental incompetence, or felony convictions.

Six states have restored constitutional carry to various degrees.  They are Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Kansas, Maine and Wyoming.  Vermont has had constitutional carry for its entire history, so it did not need to restore it.

In addition to West Virginia, legislation is also being considered in Indiana, Colorado, Idaho, Louisiana, Mississippi, Montana, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, and Utah.  Mississippi enacted a law last year that is very close to Constitutional carry.  Constitutional carry is the law in 99% of Montana and Idaho.

15 years ago, Constitutional carry was a dream for most Second Amendment supporters.  Many derided it as unobtainable.  It has been restored in 6 states, and is being debated in 15 others, some of which have passed bills with veto proof majorities in previous years.

©2016 by Dean Weingarten: Permission to share is granted when this notice is included.  Link to Gun Watch

About Dean Weingarten;

Dean Weingarten has been a peace officer, a military officer, was on the University of Wisconsin Pistol Team for four years, and was first certified to teach firearms safety in 1973. He taught the Arizona concealed carry course for fifteen years until the goal of constitutional carry was attained. He has degrees in meteorology and mining engineering, and recently retired from the Department of Defense after a 30 year career in Army Research, Development, Testing, and Evaluation.