Campus carry bill passes West Virginia House of Delegates

House Speaker Roger Hanshaw, R-Clay, voted against the bill, as did Del. Erikka Storch, R-Ohio, while Del. Elliott Pritt, D-Fayette, broke with his Democratic colleagues and voted for the bill.

SB 10 would prohibit colleges and universities from banning firearms on campus as long as the owner of the firearm has a valid concealed carry permit if age 21 or older, or a provisional concealed carry permit if between the ages of 18 and 20, effective July 1, 2024.

“The (bill) clarifies that state institutions of higher education may not restrict a trained individual from carrying a handgun,” said House Judiciary Committee Chairman Moore Capito, R-Kanawha. “It allows persons with a concealed carry license to carry a concealed handgun on the campus and the buildings of an institution of higher education.”

The bill includes numerous exemptions, including prohibiting concealed carry at certain sporting events, specific buildings, events and proceedings.

The bill also allows for concealed carry in common areas of resident halls, dining areas and study halls.

The bill requires those resident halls to provide students with secure storage for firearms and can charge fees for providing storage.

Some form of the Campus Self-Defense Act has been introduced in the Legislature every year beginning in 2017 since the Republicans took the majority in the House and Senate in 2015. The closest the bill has come to passage was 2019. That bill passed the House but was never taken up by the Senate.

SB 10 is opposed by both West Virginia University and Marshall University. Many of the state’s other public colleges and universities also oppose the bill.

A public hearing held last week by the House Judiciary Committee saw a number of college students and professors speak against the bill, citing issues of safety and the mental health of fellow students.

“When we had this open forum…38 out of 40 spoke against it. I’d say that’s a majority. Actually, that’s a supermajority who were against this bill. Students, faculty, staff, alumni, institution presidents are all against it,” said House Minority Leader Doug Skaff, D-Kanawha. “Who is for it? Yes, there are faculty for it. Yes, there are students for it. Yes, there are people for it. But they don’t represent the vast majority. We’re here today to legislate and mandate and put into code something that a small portion of the people want.”

Debate on SB 10 went on for nearly 90 minutes Tuesday, stretching from the late morning until early afternoon, with members of the Republican majority speaking in favor of the bill and most of the Democratic minority opposing the bill.

“We hear about smaller government all the time from this body. I’ve yet to see it implemented this session,” said House Minority Whip Shawn Fluharty, D-Ohio. “We’re ignoring and superseding administrators, ignoring and superseding faculty, ignoring and superseding students and college presidents, all who have said ‘no thanks.’ In fact, if they thought this was a good policy, they would have implemented it on their own years ago.”

“I am also for local control, and the best local control is the individual rights protected under our United States Constitution,” said Delegate Larry Kump, R-Berkeley. “Those words mean what they say. The Second Amendment is my gun permit.”

If SB 10 completes legislative action, West Virginia would be the 12th state to allow for campus carry according to the advocacy group Students for Concealed Carry. The bill is supported by pro-Second Amendment advocacy groups, such as the National Rifle Association and the West Virginia Citizens Defense League.

Del. Mike Honaker, R-Greenbrier, is a former Virginia State Police trooper who responded to the 2007 Virginia Tech school shooting when 32 people were killed. He said it was his duty to uphold the constitutional right of people to defend themselves.

“There is a reason I feel strongly about this issue. There is a reason I don’t want to interfere with someone else’s ability to defend themselves if they feel like they need to defend themselves,” Honaker said.

“Years ago, I sat on the foot of my bed with Windex and paper towels and washed the blood of almost 30 kids off of my shoes because of an active shooter on a college campus,” Honaker continued. “I fear that if I do not support this legislation and it happens again, washing their blood off my shoes will not compare to trying to wash the blood off my hands because I disarmed them when the wolf came.”

The bill heads back to the Senate to concur with changes the House made and could be on the desk of Gov. Jim Justice later this week.