WISCONSIN PANEL SIDES WITH NRA: VOIDS RESTRICTION

Associated Press
Updated: 11/07/2011 11:10:02 PM CST


Applicants to carry concealed weapons in Wisconsin will no longer
have to complete four hours of training, after a Republican-controlled
legislative committee voted Monday to do away with a requirement
that had been assailed by the National Rifle Association as being too severe.

The rule mandating the successful completion of at least four hours
of training had been put in place by Republican Attorney General
J.B. Van Hollen's Department of Justice.

Van Hollen testified Monday in support of the rule, saying it was
necessary since the Legislature had said only that training was
required but didn't say how much. He said four hours was the
industry standard and not having a minimum requirement would
make it impossible for the DOJ to verify that applicants had
completed any training.

He also said that given that more than 20,000 people have
submitted applications to get licenses already, the public has not
found the requirement to be too onerous, but Republicans who
control the Joint Committee for Review of Administrative Rules
ignored Van Hollen's concerns and voted to suspend the rule
effective immediately. The committee also removed a requirement
that applicants have a signed statement from the instructor
verifying that the course had been successfully completed.

"There's no reason why we have to micromanage how people obtain
their concealed carry licenses," said Sen. Glenn Grothman, R-West Bend.
He said other states with no minimum training requirements haven't had
any problems and "there's going to be no problem in the state of Wisconsin either."

Republican Assembly Majority Leader Scott Suder, a sponsor of the bill,
spoke in support of suspending the training requirement, saying the
Legislature's intent was to leave it up to applicants to determine
how many hours of training they needed.

"I really, truly believe we have to trust that individual," Suder said.
The DOJ did not have the authority to specify a minimum number
of hours, he said.

From now on, the DOJ will be "very free in accepting applications
unless we have reason to believe there has been fraud or dishonesty
or some aspect of the law has been disregarded," Van Hollen said.

Democrats on the committee sided with Van Hollen but didn't have
the votes to keep the rule in place.
"Without the provisions of four hours, we have a subjective standard
that anybody is going to be able to meet," said Rep. Chris Taylor, D-
Madison. "I don't know why on Earth this committee would want to
jeopardize public health and public safety by doing this."

Gov. Scott Walker signed off on the emergency rules last month,
just two weeks before the law took effect Nov. 1. Walker,
commenting after the NRA complained that the training
requirement was unjustified and too demanding, said he had
reservations about the rule but he had no choice given that the law
was about to take effect.

NRA spokesman Andrew Arulanandam praised the removal of the
four-hour training minimum, calling it a "monumental victory for
self-defense laws and for law-abiding men and women in Wisconsin."

The Republican-controlled Legislature passed Wisconsin's concealed
carry law in July after years of lobbying from the NRA. With passage
of that law, Illinois was left as the only state where concealed
weapons are banned.

Under the law, anyone who wants to carry a concealed weapon must
obtain a license from DOJ. Applicants must receive training through
courses conducted by national or state organizations that certify
firearm instructors, courses offered by police departments,
technical colleges and universities and courses for police officers
and private detectives. They also must provide written that proof
they've completed such a course.

[All emfasis has been added by David.]