Teachers and other school board employees; grounds for dismissal. (HB786)

Introduced By

Del. Tony Wilt (R-Harrisonburg) with support from co-patrons Del. Jeff Campbell (R-Marion), Del. Terry Kilgore (R-Gate City), Del. Israel O'Quinn (R-Bristol), and Sen. Ben Chafin (R-Lebanon)

Progress

Introduced
Passed Committee
Passed House
Passed Senate
Signed by Governor
Became Law

Description

Dismissal of teachers and other school board employees; grounds. Provides that no school board employee shall be dismissed or placed on probation solely on the grounds that (i) he possessed an unloaded firearm that is in a closed container in or upon his vehicle or in the locked trunk of his vehicle, a knife having a metal blade in or upon his motor vehicle, or an unloaded shotgun or rifle in a firearms rack in or upon his motor vehicle or (ii) the employee, who has a valid concealed handgun permit, possessed a concealed handgun while in his motor vehicle in a parking lot, traffic circle, or other means of vehicular ingress or egress to the school. Read the Bill »

Status

02/27/2014: Failed to Pass in Committee

History

DateAction
01/07/2014Committee
01/07/2014Prefiled and ordered printed; offered 01/08/14 14102127D
01/07/2014Referred to Committee on Education
01/17/2014Assigned Education sub: Elementary and Secondary Education
01/29/2014Subcommittee recommends reporting (5-Y 3-N)
01/29/2014Subcommittee recommends referring to Committee on Militia, Police and Public Safety
02/03/2014Reported from Education (13-Y 9-N) (see vote tally)
02/03/2014Referred to Committee on Militia, Police and Public Safety
02/04/2014Impact statement from DPB (HB786)
02/04/2014Assigned MPPS sub: Subcommittee #1
02/06/2014Subcommittee recommends reporting (4-Y 1-N)
02/07/2014Reported from Militia, Police and Public Safety (15-Y 7-N) (see vote tally)
02/08/2014Read first time
02/10/2014Read second time and engrossed
02/11/2014Read third time and passed House (67-Y 32-N)
02/11/2014VOTE: PASSAGE (67-Y 32-N) (see vote tally)
02/12/2014Constitutional reading dispensed
02/12/2014Referred to Committee on Education and Health
02/18/2014Assigned Education sub: Public Education
02/27/2014Passed by indefinitely in Education and Health (8-Y 7-N) (see vote tally)

Video

This bill was discussed on the floor of the General Assembly. Below is all of the video that we have of that discussion, 1 clip in all, totaling 2 minutes.

Comments

Gregg J writes:

There are no shooting ranges on school property. There is no reason to have a gun on school property.

Michael GS writes:

Responding to Gregg J: Resource officers carry guns on school property to defend students. Note, too that if the principal at Sandy Hook Elementary School had been armed with a gun instead of trying to fend off the criminal shooter with only her bare arms, that tragedy would have been minimized or perhaps averted. This bill, and HB 21, which are both intelligently written, would help safeguard Virginia's students, not to mention the jobs of dedicated teachers and their constitutional rights as well.

Waldo Jaquith writes:

Note, too that if the principal at Sandy Hook Elementary School had been armed with a gun instead of trying to fend off the criminal shooter with only her bare arms, that tragedy would have been minimized or perhaps averted.

Adam Lanza's mother was heavily armed. But she's dead, too.

Hannah writes:

What I like about this bill has nothing to do with wanting to have the use of the firearm on the campus, but rather to do with off-campus. I am a concealed carry holder and school board employee, but I cannot exercise that right Monday through Friaday. So before I go to work and when I'm doing my business in town after work I cannot have the firearm because during the middle of the day, or at some point of the day, will be on a school campus. It's not as simple and going home to get it and going back out, because I live 30 miles away from town, so that's not practical. If I could keep the firearm unloaded and locked in my vehicle I could exercise my rights off the clock.