Posted on Thu, Mar. 23, 2006
Kansas House overrides gun veto
By DAVID KLEPPER
The Star’s Topeka correspondent
TOPEKA — The Kansas House voted 91-33 this morning to override Gov. Kathleen Sebelius’ veto of a bill allowing Kansans to carry concealed weapons.
Following Wednesday’s vote to override in the Senate, the bill will now become law.
Kansas will join the 46 states that already allow concealed handguns.
A two-thirds vote was needed in both chambers to override the veto. The Senate voted 30-10 to override, and 27 votes were needed. In the House, 84 votes were needed.
The bill allows Kansans over 21 to carry a concealed handgun in public if they pass a background check and undergo training. Convicted felons and those with criminal histories of drug use, domestic violence or multiple DUIs would be barred.
Permit applications could begin in July. Applications would go to the local sheriff and would cost up to $150.
Concealed weapons would be banned at schools, bars, sporting events, libraries, courtrooms and places of worship, and any building posting a sign prohibiting them.
The Legislature has passed similar bills in the past, but they have been vetoed, first by Republican Gov. Bill Graves in 1997 and then by Sebelius in 2004. Sebelius said she shared the concerns of law enforcement groups, business owners and religious leaders who opposed allowing legal concealed weapons in “businesses, restaurants, malls and any number of other public places.”
“Hidden weapons make it harder for law enforcement to do its job, and they make Kansas’ workplaces less safe,” she said.
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