No virus found in this outgoing message. Checked by AVG Free Edition. Version: 7.1.362 / Virus Database: 267.13.4/175 - Release Date: 11/18/2005 New Mexico Reciprocity Takes Effect November 30: New Mexico DPS has updated their CHL rules and announced reciprocity with 20 other states, including Arizona, effective November 30. Note that New Mexico only allows the carry of one handgun with a CHL. I am unable to comment at this time as to whether it would be legal to carry one exposed handgun and a second one concealed. http://www.nm-ccw.com/CCW%20younger%20longer%20more%20ammended%20(2).doc --- Tax Break May Be Restored For Wisconsin Gun Clubs: Until recently, gun clubs in Wisconsin did not pay sales tax on membership dues. One state legislator wants to reintroduce that exemption for clubs that proved safety training for at least 100 people a year. http://www.wrn.com/gestalt/go.cfm?objectid=898604A6-485C-4D74-B6EBAF3F2E4E4213&dbtranslator=local.cfm --- Zero-Tolerance Report: A student in a Colorado school, frustrated with a teacher, remarked. "This is why kids bring guns to school." The student has received a "10-day in-school suspension.". http://durangoherald.com/asp-bin/article_generation.asp?article_type=news&article_path=/news/05/news051118_8.htm --- Oops, Wrong House: A masked, armed gunman is in the hospital after entering the kitchen of a home an pointing his gun at a female occupant. He was shot by the homeowner, who had legally purchased a pistol and obtained a carry permit after having a knife held to his throat by a burglar a year ago. http://www.courant.com/news/local/hc-nebburglar1118.artnov18,0,4018615.story?coll=hc-headlines-local --- The World Is Full Of Experts: A certified firearms instructor, who had supported the bid of local tactical officers for a couple of AR-15's now expresses dismay that they have also been approved for general patrol officers. Aside from the numerous spelling errors, the "facts" are erroneous in suggesting that police shotgun ammunition has less penetration of building walls than .223 bullets. http://oracle.newpaltz.edu/article.cfm?id=2101 --- Ohio Gubernatorial Candidate Challenged on Pro-RKBA Pose: Betty Montgomery has a history of opposing licensed CCW and opposes clean-up of Ohio's CHL law. http://www.buckeyefirearms.org/article2820.html --- Large Training Facility Slated For Tulsa: Scheduled for completion in May, the United States Shooting Academy is billing itself as he nation's largest law enforcement training and competition shooting facility. http://www.officer.com/article/article.jsp?id=26990&siteSection=1 --- Rule One, Rule Two Reminder: A Deputy US Marshal describes how he shot himself in the hand while disassembling his Glock pistol. (Rule One: All firearms are always loaded. Rule Two: Don't let the muzzle cross anything you're not prepared to shoot.) http://www.thegunzone.com/mos/nd.html --- From GOA: Senate Now Planning To Extend FBI Fishing Expeditions Into Gun Sales Records -- Even as opposition has begun to coalesce! Gun Owners of America E-Mail Alert 8001 Forbes Place, Suite 102, Springfield, VA 22151 Phone: 703-321-8585 / FAX: 703-321-8408 http://www.gunowners.org ACTION: Things are happening in the Senate! If you have not contacted your Representative yet (as a result of yesterday's alert), here's your chance to contact your senators. There are six senators who have said they may be willing to filibuster this legislation -- and one of them has even committed to do so through the Thanksgiving recess. That's why it's imperative that you contact your two senators. Please urge them to oppose the conference version of the PATRIOT Act (H.R. 3199), and specifically, its provision to allow secret court orders to collect gun records. You can use the pre-written message at the bottom of this alert and send it as an e-mail by visiting the GOA Legislative Action Center at http://www.gunowners.org/activism.htm (where phone and fax numbers are also available). Friday, November 18, 2005 Gun Owners of America contacted you yesterday about H.R. 3199, which will expand the ability of the FBI to compile a registration list of gun purchase records. The Senate is now planning to vote on this PATRIOT Act reauthorization bill as soon as Saturday, as Majority Leader Bill Frist is trying to ram the bill through the Senate before it recesses before Thanksgiving. Under current law, Section 215 of the PATRIOT Act allows the FBI to get secret court orders to seize ANY business records it believes would be relevant to an anti-terrorism investigation... without having to make the case that the records they're confiscating have any connection to a suspected terrorist. All along, the concern has been that "business records" can be interpreted to mean "gun records." The FBI has been making this assertion already, even though federal law doesn't specifically state they have the authority to do so. (In fact, the McClure-Volkmer law states that the feds cannot retain firearms records at all.) Well, H.R. 3199 would change all that. The bill clearly states that "firearms sales records" are now fair game for the FBI, in essence, overturning the prohibition on gun registration. But if H.R. 3199 were to be defeated, two things would happen: 1. The FBI would lose the ability to point to federal law and say that they can get a secret court order to grab your "firearms sales records," and, 2. Section 215 of the PATRIOT Act would sunset entirely, which means the FBI won't be able to get secret court orders for ANY of your records (including medical, library, financial, etc.). Unfortunately, H.R. 3199 allows Section 215 to continue for another seven years, when it would then "sunset." But seven years is too long to allow these FBI fishing expeditions to continue. Similar to yesterday, please use the pre-written letter below to direct your comments to your Senators, and urge all freedom-loving Americans you know to do the same. -----Pre-written letter----- Dear Senator: The PATRIOT Act expansion bill (H.R. 3199) would allow the United States government to seize every lawful gun sale record in the country... solely on the basis of a bureaucrat's determination that a national registry of gun owners would be useful in an anti-terrorism investigation. Registration leads to confiscation. H.R. 3199 amends Section 215 of the PATRIOT Act to allow agents of the federal government to get secret court orders for "firearms sales records" which, in their opinion, are relevant to investigating terrorism. FFL holders must retain copies of the 4473 forms (yellow sheets) filled out on every gun sale. Thus, an anti-gun administration could easily determine that such records would be useful in the fight against terrorism, and demand them all. Even more ominous, the gun dealers would be required NOT to disclose the existence of the investigation to their customers, meaning that the dealer (rather than the gun purchaser) would be the only person who could contest this action. And why should he risk his livelihood on my behalf? This is massive gun control by simple executive fiat. There is an illusory right to challenge the secrecy of the court orders, but it's just that... an illusion. If the government claims there is a national security issue at stake or that there's an ongoing criminal investigation, then the FBI's fishing expedition can remain a secret and remain unchallenged. I believe that a national gun registry is a step this country cannot afford to take, and one that the citizenry will not abide. I would ask you, in the strongest terms, to oppose this PATRIOT Act "reform" bill outright. Please vote against H.R. 3199 and support any effort to filibuster it as well. Sincerely, *************************** --- From NRA-ILA: FIREARMS LAW & SECOND AMENDMENT SYMPOSIUM NOW AVAILABLE ON-LINE To fulfill the promise of the Declaration of Independence, the authors of the U.S. Constitution and its Bill of Rights made it clear that individual rights were paramount. The Bill of Rights, wrote James Madison, was "calculated to secure the personal rights of the people." Yet when the U.S. Department of Justice issued its exhaustive 2004 memorandum on the Second Amendment, concluding without reservation that "the Second Amendment secures a personal right of individuals," the national media was apoplectic. So politicized had this right become that it had been clearly set apart and segregated as different from other rights guaranteed to the "people" as in the 1st, 4th, 5th, 9th, and 14th amendments. To examine the Second Amendment in a scholarly and in-depth forum, prestigious constitutional scholars recently convened to explore issues past and present, pro and con, covering this controversial topic. This first ever "Firearms Law & the Second Amendment Symposium" was hosted by Law Students for the Second Amendment, at George Mason University School of Law along with The NRA Foundation and the NRA Civil Rights Defense Fund. The symposium was filmed in its entirety and is now available for you to view on-line. To see this ground-breaking and informative symposium, please visit www.nraila.org/ActionCenter/GrassRootsActivism.aspx?ID=29. Please share this link with friends, family, and other Second Amendment supporters. HELP NRA-ILA FIGHT FOR FREEDOM IN THE COURTS! With NRA engaged in various legal battles to protect our Second Amendment rights across the country (please see accompanying story on NRA's lawsuit to challenge the recently passed San Francisco gun ban), we are asking NRA members to contribute to NRA-ILA as we fight for freedom in the courts. Please encourage your friends, family, and other Second Amendment supporters to stand with NRA-ILA by making a financial contribution to help us fight for freedom in the U.S. courts. You may contribute by mail (please make checks payable to NRA-ILA, and send to: NRA-ILA, 11250 Waples Mill Road, Fairfax, VA 22030); by telephone at (800) -392-8683; or via our website at: https://secure.nraila.org/Contribute.aspx. Thank you for your continued support in our efforts to further the cause of freedom. A LOOK AT THE STATES (****For all of the action items below, you can find contact information for your legislators by using the "Write Your Representatives" tool at www.NRAILA.org. As always, thank you for your support.****) DELAWARE Mark your calendar for the "Concealed Carry Conference and Second Amendment Rally" to be held January 8, 2006! The Conference, held in conjunction with the Delaware State Sportsmen's Association Annual Meeting of Members, will feature special guest speaker NRA-ILA Executive Director Chris W. Cox, as well as NRA President Sandra Froman, NRA 1st Vice President John Sigler, and NRA 2nd Vice President Ron Schmeits. The conference will be held at Modern Maturity Center, 1121 Forest Ave. (Rt. 8), in Dover. Doors open at 1:00 p.m., and the meeting begins at 2:00 p.m. This event is open to everyone interested in preserving and defending the Right to Keep and Bear Arms. See you there! LOUISIANA The Legislature is currently meeting in its 1st Extraordinary Legislative Session since Hurricanes Katrina and Rita to deal primarily with critical financial matters affecting the state. This week, they passed HCR 39 by Representative Steve Scalise (R-Metairie), a resolution urging Governor Kathleen Blanco (D) to include legislation amending the state's emergency powers law in the items to be considered during a broader Extraordinary Session expected in January. As you'll recall, law enforcement officials working for, or under the direction of, the City of New Orleans and St. Tammany Parish abused their authority under this law and confiscated legally-owned firearms from law-abiding citizens trying to protect themselves, their homes, and their families after Katrina hit. NRA sought, and was granted, a temporary restraining order in federal court stopping this practice and requiring officials to return the guns to their rightful owners. We'll eep you posted! MINNESOTA On Tuesday, November 22, special elections will be held in State Senate Districts 19 and 43. Please call NRA-ILA Grassroots at (800) 392-8683 for more information on these elections. NEVADA The "Nevada Sheriff's and Chief''s Association" announced last week that they unanimously voted to ask the Department of Public Safety to request that the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms and Explosives (BATFE) grant an extension exempting CCW holders from federally required background checks and a $25 transaction fee when purchasing new firearms. As we have reported recently, BATFE conducted an audit and found that a handful of Nevada's sheriffs were not in compliance with their permit issuance policies to allow for the background check waiver. It was announced several weeks ago that the Chiefs and Sheriffs were NOT going to request the extension to the detriment of Nevada's permit holders. However, thanks to the phone calls and e-mails sent by NRA members, the chief law enforcement officers put it before their members for a vote with a more positive outcome. The extension, which will run through April, will allow those sheriffs fund not in compliance the time to address BATFE's concerns. NEW MEXICO The Department of Public Safety (DPS) has finalized its rules for implementing HB 641, the NRA-backed Right-to-Carry reform bill sponsored by Representative John Heaton (D-Carlsbad) and Senator Shannon Robinson (D-ABQ) and signed into law by Governor Bill Richardson (D) earlier this year. Last week, DPS announced that, effective November 30, the new rules will take effect and New Mexico will grant reciprocity to the following 20 states: Alaska, Arizona, Colorado, Delaware, Florida, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, and Wyoming. For a copy of the rules, please go to www.dps.nm.org/. WISCONSIN The Senate Judiciary Committee and House Criminal Justice Committee passed the "Personal Protection Act" (SB 403/AB 763) last week without adopting any detrimental amendments proposed by opponents. This critical legislation making Wisconsin the 39th Right-to-Carry state is now one significant step closer to final passage in both houses. If you have not already done so, please be sure to call your State Representative and Senator at (800) 362-9472, and ask them to support the Personal Protection Act. Every vote is critical! The State Senate passed AB 56, "Reckless Lawsuit Preemption," by a vote of 23-8. This common sense legislation is now on its way to the Governor for his consideration. In addition to ensuring that gun manufacturers, distributors, and retailers may not be sued for the acts of criminals or reckless individuals, over which they have no control, the legislation protects organizations that legally raffle firearms.&nbp; This will protect Friends of NRA, National Wild Turkey Federation, Wisconsin Bear Hunters Association and others from being the target of a reckless lawsuit if a legally raffled firearm is later used in a crime. Please call the Governor's Office at (608) 266-1212 and ask that he sign AB 56 into law. -- Stephen P. Wenger Firearm safety - It's a matter for education, not legislation. http://www.spw-duf.info .