Yet MORE Freedom for Iowa ?

Another Iowa Constitutional Amendment,
On Gun Rights
by O. Kay Henderson on February 1, 2011
in Crime & Courts,Legislature,Politics & Government

A constitutional amendment that would ban any
state law that discourages gun ownership is under
consideration in the Iowa House. For example, the
proposal would make it illegal for the state to
require licenses for carrying concealed weapons.

Just last year the Iowa Legislature voted to make
it easier to get a license, requiring county sheriffs
to issue a license to anyone who meets basic safety
and legal standards. Christopher Rager, a lobbyist
for the National Rifle Association, says a recent
case before the U.S. Supreme Court shows gun
owners need additional protection.

The proposed amendment would forbid the state
from requiring that guns be registered or even taxed.
”Forty-four states have this in their state constitutions
and Iowa is one of only six states that don’t
protect their citizens or the individuals within
their state,” Rager says.

Representative Rick Olson, a Democrat from Des
Moines, says it appears to him the N.R.A. is “too
big for their britches.”

“The NRA got a big bite out of the apple last year,”
Olson says. “It seems like they want to eat the core now, too.”

Olson is referring to the changes in the process of
getting a gun license.

“I think the licensing law that we passed last year
is very liberal, particularly in comparison to what
it was prior to last year, and that everyone that
wants a firearm goes through an application
process,” Olson says. “And very few are being denied.”

The proposed gun rights amendment is just out of
subcommittee and will next be considered by the
House Public Safety Committee

[All emfasis has been added by David.]