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In May, Senator Deuell (R, A+) made an official request for an AG opinion covering the rights of employees under SB321 (a/k/a "employer parking lot bill"). He did so in response to complaints made by employees about employers trying to assert absurd reasons to ignore the law that went into effect on Sept. 1, 2011.

Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott (R, A+) issued his AG Opinion (GA-0972) today and it is great! Employers trample the rights of gun owners at their peril. The entire opinion is attached, but the summary is as follows:

GA-0972 wrote:An employer subject to section 52.061 of the Labor Code may not ban the transport and storage of handguns in locked private vehicles by employees with concealed handgun licenses in employee parking areas by a posting the notice authorized by section 30.06 of the Penal Code.

A federally approved facility security plan under either the Maritime Transportation Security Act or the Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards is not federal law that would preempt section 52.061 of the Labor Code.

No statute of which we are aware provides a specific remedy for employees whose employers violate section 52.061. And the Legislature has not authorized this office or any other state agency to take corrective action. Despite the lack of a statutory remedy, an aggrieved employee may, depending upon the circumstances, have the ability to sue the offending employer under the Uniform Declaratory Judgments Act.

Thank you Senator Deuell and General Abbott!!

Chas.

Now tell me Texas doesn't have some very pro-gun folks in high places!

Pretty clear and direct guidance. Glad to see it.

Jumping Frog wrote:Pretty clear and direct guidance. Glad to see it.

Already printed and in my desk droor.

Anygunanywhere

So typical of the government. Enact a law, and skirt it completely by having absolutely no means of enforcing it. We have so many laws like that it can't even be taken seriously anymore.

Chris wrote:So typical of the government. Enact a law, and skirt it completely by having absolutely no means of enforcing it. We have so many laws like that it can't even be taken seriously anymore.

That is not what happened, but I can't go into details. The DJA is available and we plan to fix it in 2013.

Chas.

Chris wrote:So typical of the government. Enact a law, and skirt it completely by having absolutely no means of enforcing it. We have so many laws like that it can't even be taken seriously anymore.

That's not really the way I read it...it means that ANY AND ALL remedies are indeed available to one who is wronged, including possibly the Uniform Declaratory Judgements Act.

Of course, I am not a lawyer, don't play one on TV, and didn't stay in a Holiday Inn Express last night...

Chas. answered faster than I could type :)

So there we have it...it's good, and it'll get better!

Remember, these things take time, and steps. We didn't lose so many of our rights overnight, and we won't get them back overnight either.

Yeah, it's called 'baby steps' when you are working through these types of legislative changes. There was enough opposition to the bill as is when passed last session, so if there had been employer penalties tied to it I doubt it would have passed. When you have an elephant as big as regaining our lost gun rights is, you can't eat it all in one bite.

Within the year prior to Parking Lot Carry being passed, a co-worker of mine inquired whether CHL carriers would be allowed to carry in their personal vehicles on the property. The head of security responded with "it would never be allowed". Since Parking Lot carry has been implemented, there hasn't been one word said or email sent concerning the change in the law, though the 30.06 signs remain at the entrances of the parking lots. Nice to know we have support if problems ever arise. Thank you Sen. Deuell and AG Abbott.

The Senate Criminal Justice Committee held a public hearing in Austin on an Interim Study on the Implementation of SB321 (employer parking lot bill) this past Tuesday and I was invited to testify, along with Alice Tripp (TSRA) and Tara Micca (NRA lobbyist). Senator Hegar (SB321 author) was present and asked some excellent questions. It was clear to everyone that most companies, including many who strongly opposed SB321, are complying with the now law, but there are some who are not. A few of the noncompliant companies range from novel approaches to out-and-out violation of the law. However, most of the noncompliant companies are simply unaware of, or misinformed about, the requirements of SB321.

I recommended some changes and I suspect they will be included in a bill to strengthen the law. Senator Hegar also deserves our thanks and support for many years of working to pass this bill, and for not abandoning it once it passed! This truly is a labor of love for a Senator dedicated to preserving the rights of gun owners.

Chas.

Great news!

Great to hear, thanks

Charles L. Cotton wrote:The Senate Criminal Justice Committee held a public hearing in Austin on an Interim Study on the Implementation of SB321 (employer parking lot bill) this past Tuesday and I was invited to testify, along with Alice Tripp (TSRA) and Tara Micca (NRA lobbyist). Senator Hegar (SB321 author) was present and asked some excellent questions. It was clear to everyone that most companies, including many who strongly opposed SB321, are complying with the now law, but there are some who are not. A few of the noncompliant companies range from novel approaches to out-and-out violation of the law. However, most of the noncompliant companies are simply unaware of, or misinformed about, the requirements of SB321.

I recommended some changes and I suspect they will be included in a bill to strengthen the law. Senator Hegar also deserves our thanks and support for many years of working to pass this bill, and for not abandoning it once it passed! This truly is a labor of love for a Senator dedicated to preserving the rights of gun owners.

Chas.

Keith B wrote:

Now tell me Texas doesn't have some very pro-gun folks in high places!

Thanks for the post Charles.

Whatever part you played in this, thanks Charles.I'm glad we have people advocating for our gun rights.