The Georgia Senate passed the campus carry bill today, keeping the controversial measure alive in these last days of the Legislature.
House Bill 280 permits anyone with a concealed weapons permit to carry firearms on public college and university campuses, with the exception of dorms, fraternity and sorority houses, and buildings used for athletic events. On-campus child care centers would also be excluded unless there are more than three child care sites on the campus. (Here is a great MyAJC.com story on the debate around the bill.)
It may fall to Gov. Nathan Deal to act on behalf of students and parents who don't want the state's public colleges open to guns. Deal vetoed a similar campus carry measure last year, saying, "From the early days of our nation and state, colleges have been treated as sanctuaries of learning where firearms have not been allowed. To depart from such time honored protections should require overwhelming justification. I do not find that such justification exists."
With just two days left in this year's legislative session, officials say lawmakers are negotiating with Deal's office over a potential compromise before the session is gaveled to a close Thursday.
In a statement following Senate passage of the campus carry bill, the Georgia Early Education Alliance for Ready Students said:
In addition, the bill's exemption only applies to childcare programs that are licensed or regulated by the Department of Early Care and Learning. Currently, there are a small handful of early learning programs on just a few college campuses that are exempt from licensing. The Department of Early Care and Learning only regulates those programs if they accept childcare subsidies under the caps program.
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