Wisconsin Republicans weigh proposals to expand access to firearms

Republicans state lawmakers are considering proposals that would increase access to guns in Wisconsin, including one that would make it easier to carry concealed weapons and another that would further enshrine gun rights in the state constitution.

At a public hearing of the Assembly Committee on State Affairs on Wednesday, lawmakers heard testimony about a bill that would remove the need for people to have a permit to carry concealed weapons. At the hearing, firearm lobbyists argued that permits are a bureaucratic burden on what should be an expansive right. Anti-violence activists countered that the bill would do away with safety measures, like training requirements, that licenses require. 

If the bill eventually passes the Legislature, it would still need to be approved by Democratic Gov. Tony Evers — who has vetoed similar bills in the past.

Currently, 29 other states do not require a license to concealed carry, according to the U.S. Concealed Carry Association, which advocates for such laws.  

Elsewhere at the Capitol on Wednesday, the Assembly Judiciary Committee debated a change to the Wisconsin Constitution that would expand how the state defines the purpose of bearing arms. Currently, the state constitution says people “have the right to keep and bear arms for security, defense, hunting, recreation or any other lawful purpose.”  It states that that right is “fundamental, but it is not absolute.” 

The proposed change would redefine that right as “inalienable” and that “any restriction on that right shall be subject to strict scrutiny.” That refers to a high legal standard in which challenges must be motivated by achieving a compelling state interest. 

That proposal would have to pass out of the state Legislature this session and next before it would go before voters. It is not subject to a governor’s veto. 

Hearing hits on themes of individual rights vs. public safety 

At the public hearing over expanding concealed carry rights, supporters of the bill said that, under the Second Amendment, nobody should have to get extra permission to exercise a constitutionally protected right. 

“Rights do not require permit slips from the government,” said Rep. Chanz Green, R-Grand View, who cosponsored the bill. “Criminals, by definition, do not follow permitting laws. It is time to stop restricting responsible gun owners and remov(e) bureaucratic hurdles.”

Because Wisconsin already allows for open carry, gun rights supporters like Green argued that putting requirements on concealed carry could turn an average person with a gun into a criminal the moment they move their gun under a jacket or into a purse.

Anti-gun violence activists from the group Moms Demand Action also testified, many wearing red shirts associated with the organization. They argued that this would do away with one avenue by which gun users can be checked for violent histories. 

“Allowing people to carry concealed weapons in public spaces without permit, background check or safety training dismantles the system of responsible gun ownership,” said Lindsey Buscher, one of those activists. “When someone wants to get a license to drive a car, they have to prove they can operate a vehicle safely. They wear a seat belt every time they get in the car. Carrying a loaded weapon that has the potential and purpose of ending a person’s life, or many lives, should be no different.”

The proposal is opposed by the Wisconsin Coalition Against Domestic Violence and the National Association of Social Workers. It’s backed by gun rights groups like the National Rifle Association and Wisconsin Firearm Owners, Inc. 

It is also opposed by the Wisconsin Professional Police Association. Some research indicates that police shootings of civilians increase in states that don’t require concealed carry permits. According to Rep. Angela Stroud, D-Ashland, who is a sociologist, that could be because “now the officer has to presume that everyone they come across could be armed.”

She argued that maintaining the licensing system is “a key tool” in the effort to “keep guns out of the hands of the people who should not have them.”