The House Public Safety Committee completed its final meeting before crossover, advancing multiple firearms bills and Senate companions along party lines (12-7) while tabling an ICE notification bill 11-6. The most contested item was HB 1524, which would prohibit carrying assault-style firearms in public areas statewide and drew extensive testimony from both sides.
+ 13 more actions
Karen Hamilton asked where exactly a citizen could exercise their Second Amendment right given the bill's prohibition on any public street, road, alley, sidewalk, right-of-way, public park, or place open to the public; Garrett McGuire responded the Second Amendment right is still intact and the bill only addresses open carry of certain firearms. A committee member whose name was unclear in the transcript pressed McGuire on why the bill removes the exemption for licensed security guards who protect places of worship and public events; McGuire responded those individuals can still conceal carry firearms with 10 rounds or less, and confirmed that the exemption for licensed security guards is in fact removed.
+ 3 more controversies
“What this bill is meant to do is stop armed people from seeking to suppress the First Amendment rights of others or to deny access to areas that the public have ought to have access to by presenting themselves in an armed fashion that is intended to intimidate. Because the force of arms is such that someone is unwilling to go into a community or an area is to prevent armed people, for instance, from standing outside of a judge's house to intimidate them as they're going to make a judicial ruling. There is no right to do that. There's no long accepted tradition of doing that in the United States.”
+ 2 more quotes
Subscribe to see all key actions, controversies, quotes, and what's next.
Sign in to subscribeWelcome to the final meeting House Public Safety Committee before crossover. Members will take attendance on the electronic voting board. Indicate their presence on the electronic voting board. Clerk will close the roll. Quorum is present. We are ready to get started. All right. First on our agenda we have an administrative item. Hamilton, you wanted to strike Your House Bill 533. Is that right? That's correct. All right. Is there a motion? So move. Second. It's been moved in second. We strike. House Bill 533. As many as favor that motion will say aye. Those. Oh, it's to strike. Sorry. As a record of a clerk will open the roll. So used to carrying it over. Clerk will close the roll. That bill is stricken from the record by a vote of 16 to 0. Thank you, delegate Hamilton. All right, Del, you have a subcommittee report from subcommittee two. Let's do that. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Number of bills were recommended to be continued under Rule 22 to the 2027 session. First House Bill 1035 by delegate Wilt. Then we had House Bill 1162 by delegate Walker. Followed by 1315 by delegate Scott. And House Bill 1388 by…
Subscribe to unlock the full transcript, summary, and search across all Virginia committee hearings.
Sign in to subscribe