FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 24, 2024

North Salem, NY – On Friday, after a protracted battle in the Wyoming State Senate, Governor Gordon vetoed HB 125/House Enrolled Act No. 49, a bill purported to eliminate “gun-free zones”, including colleges campuses and certain public facilities.  Initially, after quickly passing the House, HB 125 was voted down in Senate Judiciary by a 3-2 vote, only to be recalled by the full Senate against much protest by the Senate President and the Senate Rules Committee.  HB 125 ultimately passed the Senate, which then forced the Governor to either sign, veto or allow HB 125 to become law.

The Campaign to Keep Guns off Campus’ Executive Director, Andy Pelosi, issued this following statement in response to Governor Gordon’s veto of HB 125/House Enrolled Act No. 49, which included a provision to force public higher education institutions to allow guns on campus:

“There is a longstanding tradition in this country, whether it be higher educational systems prohibiting firearms on campus dating back to pre-Constitution days or state statutes forbidding guns on campus.  These regulations and laws recognize that, no matter where else some may think guns should be allowed in our society, guns do not belong in an environment like college campuses.  The Supreme Court has said as much where the court in Bruen reaffirmed what was stated by Justice Scalia in Heller that prohibitions on carrying firearms on college campuses are ‘consistent with this Nation’s historical tradition of firearm regulation.’ New York State Rifle & Pistol Ass’n, Inc. v. Bruen.

We thank Governor Gordon for vetoing this legislation where he stated that it ‘erodes local control norms by giving sole authority to the legislature to micromanage a constitutionally protected right’. Some of the net effects of the bill include abrogating control by local school boards, while also allowing loaded, concealed handguns to be carried on Wyoming’s community colleges and at the University of Wyoming with virtually no exclusion zones.  Our nation’s schools must remain havens for learning that do not include the presence of firearms. This veto is a win for the stakeholders in our public education system and would not have been possible without the great advocacy by students, faculty, administrators, gun violence prevention activists and other concerned citizens.

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ABOUT THE CAMPAIGN TO KEEP GUNS OFF CAMPUS

The Campaign to Keep Guns Off Campus works with K-12 schools, colleges and universities across the country to oppose legislative policies that would force loaded, concealed guns on campuses. Since 2008, The Campaign to Keep Guns Off Campus is the only national organization of its kind tasked with protecting higher educational institutions and the communities they serve. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Contact: Andy Pelosi, The Campaign to Keep Guns Off Campus (914-629-6726) [email protected]