SB 1015/HB 0581 in Tennessee to remove auto knife and blade length prohibitions

[hso]

New legislation introduced in Tennessee by Senator Bell and Representative Dennis to get rid of the outdated blade length restriction and auto knife prohibition needs support from residents and anyone visting or just traveling through the state (and that's a lot of folks on this side of the Mississippi River). This pertains to RKBA since "arms" under many state constitutions include more than just guns and the 1957 federal switchblade ban was an early weapons ban that Antis modeled later firearms bans on.

SB 1015/HB 0581 are the Tennessee Senate and House bills the below letter pertains to.

I'm asking you to support HB0581 to get rid of the patchwork of blade length laws across the state of Tennessee that can make a law-abiding person break the law simply by crossing a county line to visit family or friends or conduct business. I'm also asking for your support to remove Tennessee's antiquated prohibiiton on so-called switchblades. Neighboring states discarded such laws years ago as their law enforcement and legislators recognized that modern folding knives made such prohibitions pointless. Law enforcement officers will tell you that criminals don't use $100 automatic knives to commit crimes. Since Tennessee allows their possession by emergency medical technicians the utility of these knives is clear and since collectors are allowed to have them there obviously is no reason those who can afford them shouldn't purchase them from Tennessee retailers providing additional revenue to the state.

Thank you for your support of HB0581.

Please, if you live in or travel to/through Tennessee make an appeal to the folks representing you or to the sponsors of these bills supporting SB 1015 or HB 0581. Send this request for help to everyone in your network of friends and make every gun or knife shop aware of the opportunity to expand their sales through supporting this legislation.

Here are the email addresses for Rep. Dennis ([email protected]) and Sen. Bell ([email protected]) so you can email your support and ask what you can do to help this legislation get passed.
Here is a link to identify your Tennessee legislators http://capitol.tn.gov/legislators/

 

[IndispensableDestiny]

The Switchblade Act was passed by politicians frightened at the prospect of Puerto Ricans running around with the blades. They got the idea from watching "West Side Story" on Broadway.

 

[r1derbike]

Arkansas lifted its blade length restrictions some time ago. It is a worthwhile cause, and I hope Tennessee follows suit. We had blade training in our CHCL class (now THAT was a class).

Tennessee needs to hit it hard. That blade may be your last line of defense. No reason it should not be legal to use it.

 

[mdauben]

I wish our neighbors north of the border the best of luck in this welcome updating of their wepons laws.

 

[Kaeto]

Be careful that your legislators don't morph this bill like one working its way here in MI. Went from removing the 'switchblade' limitation to banning carrying any type of knife off of your own property.

 

[hso]

Kaeto,

We don't have to worry about those sorts of shennanigans here. This is being shepharded by Knife Rights and a large knife related industry in TN.

 

[Kaeto]

Here you can go from one city and be legal and as soon as you cross into the next city you can be arrested and charged with a felony.

 

[hso]

That's the case in any state without preemption and part of what this legislation is attempting to solve.

 

[hso]

We have movement on this bill. Now we need to focus on the final push.

Thanks to our phone calls and emails Tennessee Representative Mike Harrison has agreed to hear HB0581 the Tennessee Knife Rights Bill, on April 3. It is important to contact him and THANK him for agreeing to hear the bill and also to ask him to vote YES on HB0581 when it is heard.

His email address is: [email protected] His office phone is 615- 741-7480

THEN it is CRITICAL that you contact the following members of the committee to ask them to vote YES when it is heard on April 3.
Rep. David Alexander - [email protected] 615-741-8695
Rep. Joe Armstrong - [email protected] 615-741-0768
Rep. Kevin Brooks - [email protected] 615-741-1350
Rep. Lois DeBerry - [email protected] 615-741-3830
Rep, Craig Fitzhugh - [email protected] 615-741-2134
Rep. David Hawk - [email protected] 615-741-7482
Rep. Gerald McCormick - [email protected] 615-741-2548
Rep. Steve McDaniel - [email protected] 615-741-0750
Rep. Gary Odom - [email protected] 615-741-4410
Rep. Dennis Roach - [email protected] 615-741-2534
Rep. Charles Sargent - [email protected] 615-741-6808

HB0581 would change the existing law to allow possession of all automatic/switchblade knives and enact knife law preemption which would make the state the sole authority on knife laws, which will create consistency throughout Tennessee.

Please contact Rep Harrison and the others on the committee NOW if you live in or travel to/through Tennessee!

 

[k_dawg]

Done!
Thank you for the heads up!

 

[hso]

Once more into the breach...

HB0581 cleared the House Finance Subcommittee and is now on the agenda for a full House Finance Committee vote next week!

We now need to call and email Chairman Sargent and each one of the House Finanace Committee members and ask them to please vote YES on HB0581.

According to the legislative analysis, HB0581 has "no significant fiscal impact" on the state of Tennessee and therefore there is no reason why the Finance Committee shouldn't pass this bill. However, it still received 5 NO votes in the sub-committee! That is a dangerous message to the full Committee.

If you're in TN or travel to/through TN, please be sure to contact everyone on the below list, then get your friends, family and anyone else you know to call and email also!!!

When calling and writing, simply ask them to vote in favor of HB0581, remind them that the legislative analysis says it has "no significant fiscal impact", and you could also remind them that SB1015, the companion bill in the Tennessee Senate, has already passed 27-3. Keep your calls and emails POLITE, short and to the point.

Here's the contact information for everyone we need to inundate with calls and emails. Let's have them come in Monday morning to full in boxes!

Chairman, Rep. Charles Sargent - [email protected] 615-741-6808
Rep. David Alexander - [email protected] 615-741-8695
Rep. Joe Armstrong - [email protected] 615-741-0768
Rep. Kevin Brooks - [email protected] 615-741-1350
Rep. Kent Calfee - [email protected] 615-741-7658
Rep. Mike Carter - [email protected] 615-741-3025
Rep. Barbara Cooper - [email protected] 615-741-4295
Rep. Lois DeBerry - [email protected] 615-741-3830
Rep, Craig Fitzhugh - [email protected] 615-741-2134
Rep. Steve Hall - [email protected] 615-741-2287
Rep. Mike Harrison - [email protected] 615-741-7480
Rep. David Hawk - [email protected] 615-741-7482
Rep. Matthew Hill - [email protected] 615-741-2251
Rep. Curtis Johnson - [email protected] 615-741-4341
Rep. Gerald McCormick - [email protected] 615-741-2548
Rep. Steve McDaniel - [email protected] 615-741-0750
Rep. Larry Miller - [email protected] 615-741-4453
Rep. Gary Odom - [email protected] 615-741-4410
Rep. Dennis Roach - [email protected] 615-741-2534
Rep. Johnny Shaw - [email protected] 615-741-4538

To make a mailing list easier if you want to send all of them the same message -

[email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected]

 

[hso]

Example email -

Dear Representative,

Like so very many Tennesseans I carry a knife from time to time working around the garden or the house or hiking/hunting/boating. I encourage you to vote YES in support of HB0581 so that as I go to Tractor Supply or Home Depot or hiking, camping or hunting that I don't have to wonder if the town or county I'm going to or through has the same blade length law as home. Having a patchwork of blade length rules can make the knife in my pocket legal one minute and illegal the next as I go about my normal weekend activities (and with spring finally having arrived there are a lot of outdoor activities going on). I'm a Scout Leader, gardener, hiker, whitewater boater, hunter and lover of the beautiful outdoors in Tennessee and I'd like you to vote YES in support of HB0581.

Thank you,

 

[4season]

I just received a response from my Representative, David Hawk. He is on board.

 

[hso]

Yep, I spoke with Rep. Hawk on the last round and he was the only one to answer his own phone and was very receptive to the arguments for the bill.

 

[hso]

To make it even easier to call the Committee members just paste the list below into an email and send it to your phone. Then you can just go down the phone number column and have your phone call without having to dial.
Using this approach I called everyone on the list in about 7 minutes. Just leave a brief message you would like their support and YES vote on HB0581 and you're done (unless you get a live human willing to talk to you).

Chairman, Rep. Charles Sargent - 615-741-6808
Rep. David Alexander - 615-741-8695
Rep. Joe Armstrong - 615-741-0768
Rep. Kevin Brooks - 615-741-1350
Rep. Kent Calfee - 615-741-7658
Rep. Mike Carter - 615-741-3025
Rep. Barbara Cooper - 615-741-4295
Rep. Lois DeBerry - 615-741-3830
Rep, Craig Fitzhugh - 615-741-2134
Rep. Steve Hall - 615-741-2287
Rep. Mike Harrison - 615-741-7480
Rep. David Hawk - 615-741-7482
Rep. Matthew Hill - 615-741-2251
Rep. Curtis Johnson - 615-741-4341
Rep. Gerald McCormick - 615-741-2548
Rep. Steve McDaniel - 615-741-0750
Rep. Larry Miller - 615-741-4453
Rep. Gary Odom - 615-741-4410
Rep. Dennis Roach - 615-741-2534
Rep. Johnny Shaw - 615-741-4538

 

[hso]

The TN Sheriff's Association scared the Finance Committee with idiotic rhetoric. To keep the bill alive the sponsor had to amend out blade length and auto knife provisions, but kept the state preemption.

The long and short of it is that we need to work on getting individual sheriffs to tell the TnSA to withdraw opposition to the full bill as it was written. If, as claimed, TnSA supports the 2A then they should not be short sighted and only view guns as the "arms" they support our right to. They should not be opposed to removing blade length restrictions nor should they be opposed to "switchblades" in the face of one hand and assisted opening knives. If they can't get the TnSA to withdraw opposition then we need the individual sheriffs to support the full bill to their House Representatives. We'll be FAR better off if a Representative's sheriff tells them they don't have a problem with the full bill than just having their organization be on record as having opposed it. If you know your sheriff personally you should talk to them about contacting the House Representative and telling them that they support the original version of HB0581 and see no issue as supporters of the Right To Keep And Bear ARMS for their constituents.

This is now a district by district fight as well as what we hoped would the House following along with the Senate.