I just received an email from Ohioans for Concealed Carry regarding Ohio Rep Joe Uecker's intention to introduce a bill to allow CCW holders to store gun in locked car on employee property. Below is a short video of speech as well as the text of the email. Fellow Ohioans, please contact your reps and ask them to co-sponsor the bill when it's introduced.
<![CDATA[<a href="http://www.youtube.com/v/S5bSu_JBNSM&rel=0" target="_blank">http://www.youtube.com/v/S5bSu_JBNSM&rel=0</a>]]>Employer Parking Lot Firearm Legislation On The Horizon Written by Dave Milthaler We need you help making calls today to make this bill successful. Please read this entire article for important action items at the end.
On July 30th 2010, State Representative Uecker from Ohio's 66th District was in attendance at Ohioans for Concealed Carry's annual family picnic “Party in the Park†at Liberty Township in Powell, Ohio.
At this event he informally announced a proposed Bill that will essentially grant Concealed Handgun Licensees as well as all law abiding citizens the right to keep their firearm in their locked vehicle while at work without having to fear the risk of termination from their employment.
Most of you probably work in a Criminal Protection Zone (CPZ) and your employer prohibits you from having your otherwise legally-stored firearm stored in your vehicle. I’m also a victim of this scenario. A while back, my employer's new Policy Manual came out, and I had the fortune of “signing on the dotted line†that I have received the manualand will abide by the Company's policies.
Here's the kicker, my employer says that "they are responsible for my safety while at work". Well who is responsible for my safety before and afterward? The short answer is, I am. Yet they discriminate against my rights for self-preservation? How can I possibly defend myself if an unfortunate circumstance arises?
As it stands now, my employer has the right to terminate anyone’s employment if during a random search of vehicles they were to find an otherwise legally owned and stored handgun locked in the glove compartment of a locked car.
The following day I finished reading my NRA publication *America's First Freedom* where I saw an article stating that the Governor of our neighboring state of Indiana has signed into law House Enrolled Act No. 1065.
It states that an employer “may not adopt or enforce an ordinance, a resolution, a policy, or a rule that (1) prohibits; or (2) has the effect of prohibiting an employee of the person, including a contract employee, from possessing a firearm or ammunition that is locked in the trunk of the employee's vehicle, kept in the glove compartment of the employee's locked vehicle, or stored out of plain sight in the employee's locked vehicleâ€.
Since my employer does prohibit employees from being in possession of firearms while on company property, I feel that my employer is also responsible for my safety from the time I leave home until the time I return home to retrieve my firearm out of the safe. If something shoul d happen to me after work, such as being mugged at Wal-Mart or at the credit union, I have no means of defending myself.
On June 3rd, 2010 I sent out an email to all of the sponsors and cosponsors of H.B. 203. Although most did not reply at all, I did have the opportunity to personally talk with several state Representatives. Of these, Rep. Uecker was the most willing to help.
I spoke with my fellow Coordinator’s at OFCC where I am also a member and was given the OK to continue on as the representative of the organization in this matter since this is one of many legislative goals of the organization.
OFCC President, Jeff Garvas and I have had phone conferences with Rep. Uecker. With some input from the OFCC General Council, we were able to address some of the initial language concerns raised by the Legislative Services Commission. LSC is responsible for drafting all legislation at the request of a representative and dealing with the intricacies of making new laws properly interface with existing laws on the books.
This week, Rep. Uecker will be submitting a formal request for sponsorship of the Bill. Hopefully it will be introduced as early as next week when it’s submitted to the Clerk for an official number. At that time we’ll be able to share the initial legislation publicly.
I encourage you to PLEASE contact your State Representative and give them the “heads up†on this proposed Bill. Also ask them to seek out Rep. Uecker so they may offer to co-sponsor this Bill. This is just one small step that will do so much to protect our rights.
This story just goes to show that *one person* can make a difference in a grassroots organization!
ACTION ITEM:
Finding your representative’s contact information takes less than a minute. First, go to
http://www.legislature.state.oh.us and on the right hand side of the screen click “House†and “Zip Codeâ€. Type in your zip code, include the +4 if you have some mail handy or know your zip+4, then click “Go†– the following page will have one or more contacts listed depending upon if your zip code spans more than one legislative district.
Click on each name, write them a short email, and follow up with a phone call. Simply state that you’re a constituent and you’d like Representative XYZ to contact Representative Uecker about his Parking Lot Firearms Bill being circulated this week. While you’re on the phone with them, remind them that you want the House to take up Senate Bill 239 and send it to the Governor promptly.
