House Rejects Study Committee Amendment To Gun Bill

House lawmakers rejected an attempt to push a gun regulations bill to a summer study committee.

The bill would allow people protected by a restraining order to carry a handgun without a license for up to 60 days. Proponents say it’s about helping women in domestic violence situations.

But Rep. Terri Austin (D-Anderson) says, while well-intended, the bill makes domestic violence situations more dangerous by making it easier to bring guns into them. She offered an amendment to move the whole issue to a summer study committee.

“So that we can make some informed policy decisions and protect the lives of people that we all care about,” Austin says.

But Rep. Sean Eberhart (R-Shelbyville), the bill’s author, says lawmakers are elected to make – sometimes difficult – policy decisions.

“For us to continue to punt things down the road and put them in summer study committees, I think, is not doing the job that we were sent up here to do,” Eberhart says.

The House rejected Austin’s amendment 68 to 28.