Politics

State Senate passes campus carry bill

ATLANTA — A bill to allow guns on college campuses has passed the state Senate and is now on the way to the House.

This bill would allow anyone over 21 with a concealed carry permit to carry a firearm on a college campus in Georgia.

Critics say the schools and even the board of regents oppose this bill.

But supporters say 150 colleges in the U.S. allow it and there haven't been any problems.

“Not one of these college campuses has seen a single resulting act of violence including threats, or a single resulting suicide attempt,” State Sen. Bill Heath, R-Bremen, told Channel 2’s Richard Elliot.

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On-campus child care centers would be excluded, as would areas on some college campuses at which high school students attend class.

This is the fifth year in a row the Legislature has considered such a measure. Last year's legislation got as far as Gov. Nathan Deal's desk before he vetoed it, citing concerns that it was both too broad and that campuses have historically been gun-free to promote learning. Deal has also called for excluding campus discipline hearings and administrative and professors' offices from the proposal, but lawmakers so far have not added those exclusions.

With just two days left in this year’s legislative session, officials say lawmakers are negotiating with Deal’s office over a potential compromise before the session closes Thursday.

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution contributed to this article.