Two years in a row we've lost this one. It may not be totally dead though. Illinois members keep up the calls and letters.
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Illinois House kills bill to lower age of gun owners
By Kate Thayer
Post-Dispatch Springfield Bureau
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. - A push to lower the age for legal gun ownership in Illinois failed in the Illinois House Tuesday, but the measure may have another chance this spring.
State Rep. Richard Myers, a Macomb Republican, wants to allow 18- through 20-year-olds to apply for Firearm Ownership Identification cards without their parents' approval. The law now says those younger than 21 must have their parents' consent when applying for an firearm ownership ID card.
Supporters say 18 is a sufficient age to handle a gun.
"Age does not kill people," said state Rep. Jim Sacia, a Freeport Republican who supports the measure.
However, opponents say such a change creates safety concerns.
"I think this is madness," said House Democratic Leader Barbara Flynn Currie of Chicago, a gun control supporter. "We are taking away from parents the right to say this person is not mature enough (to have a gun)."
State Rep. Wyvetter Younge, an East St. Louis Democrat, agrees that often those younger than 21 may not be mature enough for gun ownership.
"(The proposal) would open it up to immature people handling guns and we don't need that," she said.
Myers' proposal also would stop the firearm ownership ID cards from expiring if the owner is in the Armed Forces and away at war. If approved, gun owners would not have to renew their cards until six months after they return.
"This allows our young people who have an obligation and a willingness to fight for their country to also have the ability to own a firearm," Sacia said.
Although House members voted down the measure by a 56-61 vote, Myers could call for another vote because he invoked a parliamentary move in which the issue was tabled before the vote was official.
Another gun measure passed the House in a 117-0 vote Tuesday. If approved by the Senate and Gov. Rod Blagojevich, there will be two separate offenses for felons possessing a firearm and ammunition. Currently, it's one offense for a felon to possess a loaded gun.
The Legislature is fielding a flood of gun-related legislation this year, and some believe the state may be closer than ever to approving a concealed-carry law similar to the one that went into effect in Missouri last year. Concealed-carry legislation has cleared a House committee.
Meanwhile, Chicago Mayor Richard Daley on Tuesday said Blagojevich had created a diversion and "a sideshow" by blaming the city's lobbyists for the recent failure of gun control legislation.
Blagojevich, who has been criticized for not taking a strong stand in support of gun control measures, had said Daley wasn't well-served by his lobbyists because they didn't ask the governor's office for help or keep it informed when the bills came up for a vote.
Last fall, Daley lost lawsuits attempting to hold the gun industry responsible for handgun deaths in the city. He returned to the Legislature in January with a gun control package meant to choke off the supply of weapons illegally reaching criminals, but several of his bills failed in a Senate committee.
The bill to allow 18-year-olds to purchase guns is HB182. The bill toughening the law on felons possessing firearms is HB132.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Reporter Kate Thayer
E-mail: [email protected]
Phone: 217-782-4912
