Holden plans to veto any fix for gun law

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Gov. Bob Holden vowed to veto any legislation sent to his desk that attempts to fix a constitutional flaw in the funding mechanism of Missouri's new concealed weapons law.

"The legislature can do two things: They can either repeal it or send it to a vote of the people," Holden said Friday.

Anything else, he added in response to reporters' questions, will result in a veto.

State Rep. Larry Crawford, the sponsor of the original conceal-carry law, said it will be more difficult for him to convince House leaders to act on the cleanup bill during the final weeks of the legislative session given the governor's position. At this point in the session, floor time is becoming a precious commodity.

"I'd say he just put sheriffs and counties in a bad situation with the possibility of more lawsuits," said Crawford, R-California.

With the support of rural Democrats, the Republican-led legislature in September overrode Holden's veto of a bill that allows most Missourians age 23 and older to apply for permits to carry concealed wea-pons. Enforcement of the law remained stalled until late February as concealed weapons opponents challenged it in court.

While finding that the legislature had the authority to grant conceal and carry privileges to Missourians, the state Supreme Court ruled the law could impose an unconstitutional unfunded mandate on county sheriffs by not adequately compensating them for the costs of processing permit applications.

The law allows sheriffs to charge a fee of up to $100 per application but earmarks the proceeds for equipment purchases and training, thereby barring its use for costs directly related to the permitting process.

The Senate Judiciary Committee last week approved a bill that would allow sheriffs to use revenue from the application fees to pay for any of their related costs. The measure awaits action by the full Senate. Crawford's similar bill is scheduled for a House committee hearing on Tuesday.

Some rural Missouri sheriffs, including those in Cape Girardeau, Perry and Scott counties, have already started accepting applications. Other sheriffs have chosen to wait for the legislature to fix the problem, a course of action Attorney General Jay Nixon has urged to avoid future lawsuits.

The attorneys that originally challenged the law have already sued the Moniteau County sheriff for issuing a concealed weapons permit to Crawford, alleging a violation of the court's ruling on the unfunded mandate issue.

Although he opposes concealed weapons, Holden has long maintained that Missouri voters should decide whether to allow them. Voters narrowly defeated a statewide ballot measure on the subject in April 1999.

During last year's debate, concealed weapons proponents blocked attempts to attach a referendum clause to the measure.

If the fix does clear the legislature and is blocked by Holden, lawmakers could attempt to again overrule the governor during their annual veto session in September.

The bills are SB 1332 and HB 1565.

mpowers@semissourian.com

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