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Eye On Boise

‘Firearms Freedom Act’ heads to 14th Order

Rep. Dick Harwood, R-St. Maries, presents his
Rep. Dick Harwood, R-St. Maries, presents his "Idaho Firearms Freedom Act" to the Senate State Affairs Committee on Wednesday morning. The committee voted to amend the bill, noting problems in its wording. (Betsy Russell)

Rep. Dick Harwood's "Idaho Firearms Freedom Act" is headed for the Senate's amending order, the 14th Order, after senators raised an array of questions this morning about the bill's wording. They ranged from an "or" that needs to be changed to "and" - to clarify that guns both manufactured and sold in Idaho would be stamped "Made in Idaho" rather than just those manufactured OR sold in Idaho - to serious questions about whether the bill mandates the state's taxpayers to fund the criminal defense for anyone charged with a federal crime in Idaho while using an Idaho-made gun.

Rep. Phil Hart, R-Athol, who is co-sponsoring HB 589 with Harwood, said, "It would be a cleaner bill, I think, if we made those amendments." But both he and Harwood said they worry about getting amendments accomplished this late in the legislative session. "I hope they can get it done and that we can get this to the governor's desk," Harwood said. Said Hart, "I think we're going to hope that the leadership thinks this is important on both sides of the Legislature and helps us get these through."

The bill seeks to exempt guns, ammunition and accessories manufactured in Idaho from all federal laws including registration. Harwood said it's an attempt to build a court challenge of the Commerce Clause of the U.S. Constitution, and 27 states are looking at such measures. "If you get over half the states saying we need to take a look at this, I believe the courts will do that," Harwood said.



Betsy Z. Russell
Betsy Z. Russell joined The Spokesman-Review in 1991. She currently is a reporter in the Boise Bureau covering Idaho state government and politics, and other news from Idaho's state capital.

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