Activist Phone Call this Sunday!

This week, we saw our northern neighbors achieve a major victory for gun rights as Oklahoma became the 16th state to pass Constitutional Carry.

We also saw the U.S. House sell out on our liberties as they passed H.R. 8, a dangerous gun control bill.

Both of these events motivate me even more strongly to fight for our rights here in Texas.

This week, I’m proud to have represented GOA’s Texas members in testifying in support of HB 238 by Rep. Matt Krause.

This bill, dubbed the “Come and Take It” bill, would prohibit Texas’ state and local personnel from enforcing federal regulations on firearms, ammo, and accessories that aren’t a part of our state law. If the feds want to enforce their own regulations, they can “come and take it,” but our resources should not be spent enforcing onerous gun laws that Texans haven’t even decided that we want.

As I told the committee — let Texas be Texas!

You can watch the committee hearing at this link. Rep. Krause explains the bill starting at the 17:00 mark, and my testimony begins at 25:50. See more about the bill here.

More Bills!

Here are several bills that are already scheduled for a hearing next week and might be of interest to you:

Monday, March 4 @ 2pm, Judiciary & Civil Jurisprudence Committee, Room E2.026 (see notice)

• HB 516 by Springer — SUPPORT — clarifies that property owners do not create a liability by allowing handgun carry; this may give more property owners confidence to remove their 30.06 & 30.07 signs

Monday, March 4 @ 2pm, Criminal Jurisprudence Committee, Room E2.012 (see notice)

• HB 446 by Moody & Stickland — SUPPORT — repeals the ban on carrying brass knuckles or other similar defensive tools
• HB 86 by Martinez & Goodwin — OPPOSE — adds a penalty for firing a gun in a direction other than an intended target even if no harm occurred.

If you’ll be at the Capitol, please drop a card in support or opposition of these bills. Text me at 512-937-3006 if you’re there and need help.

If you’d like to watch the livestream of these hearings, click here (link will be available on that page at the time of the hearings).

Helpful links:

• See the entire list of bills I’m tracking here in this spreadsheet.
• Capitol.texas.gov provides a wealth of information — look up bill numbers, committee schedules, and so much more
• Watch livestreams for the Texas House and for the Texas Senate
• Remember that all of these links as well as additional are available at www.GunOwnersTX.org

Since hearing notices are still being posted for next week, it’s likely more gun-related bills could be scheduled for a hearing. Join my weekly phone call this Sunday for updates . . .

Weekly Bill Update Call — Sunday @ 8pm

Please join me this Sunday for a GOA update on gun bills in Texas. I’ll include a report on my activities this past week, a peek at the upcoming week, and a segment on “How to Visit the Capitol.”

When: Sunday, March 3, 8-9pm CST

Call: (515) 604-9912

Access code: 140414#

Or join online: https://join.freeconferencecall.com/goa

Are you planning to be in Austin sometime this spring? Would you like to see the Texas lege at work? We’ll cover all the major points so you can engage in some healthy activism for gun rights — everything from parking and navigating the Capitol, finding the schedule of events for that day, and having conversations with your legislators.

We’ll continue these Sunday 8pm calls throughout legislative session, so go ahead and mark it on your calendars as a recurring event for the next few months.

Thank you so much for your support that keeps this work going. And don’t forget — we’ll need everyone to make a trip to Austin to show your support for Constitutional Carry at the committee hearing! The date is not yet set, but we expect it to be on a Wednesday and we hope for it to be soon. Stay tuned!

For Liberty,

Rachel Malone
Texas Director
Gun Owners of  America