Idaho Republican reintroduces bill to end state prohibition on private, armed militias
BOISE – The latest proposal to repeal Idaho’s longstanding ban on armed private militias received approval on Friday for future consideration this legislative session.
Sen. Dan Foreman, R-Moscow, introduced a bill that would repeal a law dating to 1927 that prohibits a “body of men” other than the Idaho Army National Guard from associating as a “military company” or parading “in public with firearms in any city or town of this state.”
The controversial bill has failed to pass in past years, and previously prompted fears that the removal could encourage militias in a state with a history of armed groups. Foreman has spearheaded a similar bill the prior two legislative sessions.
A military veteran and retired Moscow police officer, Foreman told a Senate committee Friday that the “ancient” law violates constitutional rights to bear arms and assemble peacefully. He added that it “does not take a stance” on militias, which he pointed out date back to the days of George Washington.
In recent years, Idaho National Guard leadership has proposed a repeal of the law, which is not currently enforced, arguing constitutional rights violations, according to previous Idaho Statesman reporting. At the time, Gov. Brad Little expressed support for the concept.
A legal institute at Georgetown University, the Institute for Constitutional Advocacy and Protection, has previously refuted assertions that bans on militias violate the U.S. Constitution. The U.S. Supreme Court has asserted on more than one occasion that the Second Amendment right to bear arms does not bar a state from banning private paramilitary groups, according to a fact sheet from the institute.
Idaho also has other laws that prohibit organizing acts of violence.
Republicans on the Senate committee on Friday voted unanimously to advance the bill, which will likely be scheduled for a public hearing. Sen. James Ruchti, D-Pocatello, was absent.
In past years, Ruchti, an attorney, has expressed concerns about the proposal.
“You show up to a parade, neo-Nazis are marching with weapons. Are you really going to express how you feel about them?” he said in 2023, according to prior Statesman reporting. “You’re at least going to think twice, maybe three times. Maybe you won’t even say anything.”
Separate bill on concealed weapons at college stadiums
Foreman on Friday also introduced another bill to empower students and others at public college campuses to carry concealed weapons, including at sports arenas with tens of thousands of attendees.
Current law forbids concealed weapons in dormitories and at stadiums, and allows university administrators to proscribe guns elsewhere.
Foreman, who told the committee he used to patrol the University of Idaho campus in Moscow as a police officer, proposed to forbid guns from being limited on college grounds.
When he was on patrol as an officer, Foreman was approached by students who complained about not being allowed to store guns in college dormitories, he said.
“I don’t understand why peoples’ Second Amendment rights go away just when they step on campus, to a degree,” Foreman told the committee Friday.
To critics worried about safety, Foreman said that “we have to have a little faith” in the state’s residents.
The committee’s Republicans unanimously approved the bill for a future public hearing.