ATLANTA — Gun reforms that would let people carry weapons into Georgia airports won final passage Tuesday night at the Georgia General Assembly.
Senate Bill 291, one of two major gun bills before the assembly this year, cleared the House 120-37. It already had passed the Senate and heads to Gov. Sonny Perdue for his signature.
The bill allows licensed carriers to take their guns into airports, but only up to federally controlled security checkpoints. That would include ticketing areas, as well as airport parking lots and drop-off spots.
Supporters said the state’s current rules would require those with licensed firearms in their cars to get rid of the firearms as they pull up to the airport. Those against the bill questioned the wisdom of allowing guns inside the airport.
It remains to be seen how effective this legislation will be. Perdue must sign it for it to become law, and officials at Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport have said in the past that they won’t allow guns inside the airport, regardless of what state law says.
Senate Bill 291 also prohibits law enforcement officers from confiscating people’s lawfully owned guns during emergencies and makes various other changes to state gun regulations. It does not deal with allowing concealed weapons into bars, which is one of the main goals of Senate Bill 308.
That bill, which has already passed the Senate, was scheduled to come before the House on Tuesday night, but it did not. It could be debated and voted on Thursday, the last day of the 2010 legislative session. If not, it will die for the year.
A few other bills that passed the House on Tuesday night:
SB 523 — Basically puts the Georgia sports and music halls of fame up for sale, either to a local entity or an entity elsewhere in Georgia. An amendment put in Tuesday evening moves up the timetable for that potential sale, requiring that offers to take the halls over be given to the state by the end of this year instead of by July 1, 2011. The bill also cuts the Georgia Sports Hall of Fame’s board, which decides who is honored by the hall, in half and allows for a total overhaul of the board’s membership. The bill passed the House on Tuesday 149-9. It had already passed the Senate, but will have to head back there for another vote, due to the date change made by the House.
SB 384 — Prohibits local governments from regulating mobile homes based solely on the home’s age. State Rep. Sean Jerguson, R-Holly Springs, said local governments can still pass rules regulating the homes based on their appearance and safety concerns.
The bill passed the house 100-52 on Tuesday and heads back to the Senate for further consideration.
SR 1231 — Calls for a constitutional referendum to allow the state to sign multi-year contracts for energy efficiency and conservation projects. It passed the House on Tuesday 154-2 and heads back to the Senate for further consideration.
SB 287 — Raises the fee to replace a lost drivers license from $5 to $10 the second time a person loses that license. Also allows drivers to get a different license identification number if they lose their licenses, instead of keeping the same one. This change is meant to protect people’s identities when their licenses are lost or stolen.
It passed the House 119-28 on Tuesday and heads to the Senate for further consideration.
SB 454 — Previously a bill dealing with BINGO regulations, the bill was heavily amended. Now it regulates video gambling machines, increases the license fees for them and requires store owners — and not just machine owners — to get licenses for the machines. It passed the House 156-5 and heads back to the Senate for further consideration.
To contact writer Travis Fain, call 361-2702.
