by Ken Hanson and Sean Maloney

HB495, sponsored by Rep. Terry Johnson (R) and passed into law last December, became effective March 27, 2013, and is now the law of the land. The reforms make three changes to current law:

• Eliminates the "demonstrated competency" requirement for second and future CHL renewals, making CHL training similar to a hunting license.
• Fixes the definition of a "loaded gun" to match the commonly accepted definition.
• Allows law-abiding gun owners to have their firearms stored in their cars in the state-owned parking garages such as the one under the Statehouse.

There are now ways to have a loaded magazine in your vehicle.

The definition of "unloaded" is amended in R.C. 2923.16(K)(5) and (6).

The new law allows anyone to have a loaded magazine or speed loader in the vehicle. THERE IS A TWO TIER approach to this.

For someone who does not have a Concealed Handgun License, that person may have loaded magazines or speed loaders in the vehicle so long as:

1. The magazine or speed loader does not fit any firearm being transported in the vehicle; or
2. The magazine or speed loader is in a compartment reachable only by leaving the vehicle; or
3. The magazine or speed loader is in a closed package, box or case that has multiple compartments (i.e. a gun case) as long as the magazine or speed loader is in a separate compartment in the closed package, box or case from the firearm, OR, if the closed package, box or case only has one compartment, the magazine or firearm is separately enclosed in something using a snap, buckle, zipper, button, hook and loop etc. (My best stab at this is it is a one compartment gun case, the gun or the magazine/speed loader would need to be in some sort of pouch that is closed.); or
4. The magazine or speed loader is on the person of the occupant in a pocket that is closed using a snap, buckle, zipper, button or hook and loop.

For someone with a CHL, they may have a loaded magazine in the vehicle anyway they wish, so long as any magazine for a non-handgun is not inserted into the non-handgun. (i.e. a loaded rifle magazine may be anywhere in the vehicle as long as it isn’t inserted into the rifle.)

In addition to that important change, two other changes were made.

In addition to its much-publicized Armed Teachers Training Program, Buckeye Firearms Foundation is supporting various types of educational opportunities all over the state of Ohio. Following are just a few of the many responses we have received from people who have attended the training.

...I received a rare chance to be a guest of yours for the teachers conference Saturday morning [March 16]. I would like to personally thank you for that great opportunity. This was my first time seeing Lieutenant Colonel Dave Grossman speak and surely not the last. What a great guy, and strong freedom fighter for our rights! Every word he spoke touched a prism of my heart that I truly wasn't expecting.

During these times of struggle, and an outright war for what we are God, and lawfully, given, it warms my heart to see a group of individuals so dedicated and driven to fight for what is rightfully ours, the second amendment!

In the face of the recent rash of mass murders, you not only rhetorically and generically say "It's unconstitutional to start banning and registering firearms!" you also stand for a more radical approach. That approach being arming and empowering teachers, administrators, and school board members with KNOWLEDGE. The knowledge about firearms and firearm safety. About situational awareness, building safety and security, and about crisis management! I could see the transformation unfold before my eyes, from SHEEP to SHEEPDOG [that day]!

You and your administration at BFF have an awe inspiring gift. You touch my very soul from start to finish. You inspire me to keep fighting the good fight not only for our fellow Americans, but for the future generations, the children, of this great nation as well. You are doing such great things and I will forever continue to support and pray for you all.

Again, I want to give you a personal and heartfelt, thank you so very much, for the opportunity to be your guest at the teachers conference yesterday. I will forever be enriched by the emotion, and the knowledge that I was able to experience that day. I pray that you have a positive outcome with what you are doing this coming week, training the teachers, and that it is only the beginning!

by Chad D. Baus

The first Armed Teachers Training Program class was conducted this week at Tactical Defense Institute in Adams County. The Columbus Dispatch has published the first coverage of the training, which was funded by Buckeye Firearms Foundation.

From the article:

Arming teachers in classrooms is the best way to stop more mass murders, said Jim Irvine, the president of the Buckeye Firearm Association.

"Gun control is purely political and has no place in this conversation," Irvine said. "It doesn't work."

This is why the Buckeye Firearm Foundation, a non-profit with the association, paid $30,000 for two dozen Ohio school teachers, administrators and maintenance workers to learn how to handle a gun should a shooter invade a school.

by Dean Rieck

When I needed a new belt holster for my Glock 17, I knew exactly where to look: Comp-Tac.

I'm not one of those guys who likes to collect three dozen holsters. I want one holster that suits my needs and will last forever. In this case, I needed a new holster for my full-size Glock, which I use primarily for training and fun shoots.

I've used a Kydex paddle holster from another well-known company for a few years, but I never liked it. There's no retention adjustment and I have to really yank to draw the weapon. Plus, the rivets are rusted, the plastic is thin, and I'm always worried it's going to break. I bought it because it's cheap and I guess you get what you pay for.

That's why I wanted to make a change. And I knew Comp-Tac was the right place to look. I knew this because last year, I took a 3-day class at Tactical Defense Institute and tested a Comp-Tac holster for my M&P9c, which I use for concealed carry. It performed flawlessly and I couldn't have been happier.

So of course I returned to Comp-Tac to get a holster for my Glock. I chose the belt holster because, while paddles make gearing up and down a little easier, having anything down your pants will eventually cause a little discomfort over a period of time. Plus, a belt holster provides more space between the body and the pistol grip for a confident draw stroke.

by Chad D. Baus

The Hill is reporting that Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) has emerged as a key player in Senate Democrats' battle to move legislation to impose a so-called "universal" background check gun registration scheme that would force law-abiding gun owners to get permission from the government before any private transfer of firearms, even among family members.

From the article:

McCain and Sens. Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Dean Heller (R-Nev.) are at the top of a list of Republicans considered most likely to sign on to legislation expanding background checks after talks with Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) stalled earlier this month.

Sen. Mark Kirk (R-Ill.) has signaled he will likely support the yet-to-be-finalized proposal he negotiated with Sens. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) to expand background checks to cover private gun sales, according to Senate sources.

by Jim Shepherd

For everyone who's celebrating California Senator Dianne Feinstein's "2013 Assault Weapons Ban" being omitted in the package of legislation being considered in the Senate, a word of warning: not so fast.

Sure, Sen. Feinstein's had a public come-apart over Majority Leader Harry Reid's decision to omit her signature piece of legislation from the Democrat's comprehensive gun bill, but that's only a skirmish. It is too-early to put this one into the record books as a win.

After all, it wasn't booted because anti-gun pols didn't want to pass it. It was bounced because plenty of Democratic Senate seats are going to be contested - in relatively conservative states - in 2014.

And Speaker Reid's decision wasn't to bolster his NRA rating, it was to protect his majority leader position. He'd sell out the NRA rating just as quickly as he pulled the proverbial rug out from under Sen. Feinstein. With her extreme measures off the board, he's still hoping to get some gun controls passed. As he'll undoubtedly say in the not-too-distant future, "hey, I got the extreme stuff out of the bills, we need to pass something here."

by Chad D. Baus

The Newark Advocate reported recently that firearms were reported missing after a break-in at Hebron, OH's Buckeye Outdoors.

From the article:

Officers were called to the store at 10:36 p.m. on reports of an alarm triggered by broken glass, said Lt. Larry Brooks, with the Hebron Police Department. Officers found several firearms missing from the store, Brooks said.

Newark and Pataskala police were called to assist in looking for the robber or robbers, bringing in K-9 units to search the store. The robbers were not located.

...The store does have a security system in place and police officers are looking into whether there is a video recording of the break-in, Brooks said.

Let's pretend for a moment that the gun ban extremists' "universal background check" scheme to license all law-abiding gun owners was already in place. Does anyone thing that these gun thieves would be sure to ask anyone they sell their stolen guns to to submit to a background check?

Of course not. If passed, so-called "universal" background checks would be nothing of the kind. Instead, they would be another regulatory burden that would only effect law-abiding gun owners and retailers completing legal transactions, with the ultimate goal of giving the Federal government the power to register all law-abiding gun owners.

The criminals, of course, would continue on as they always have.

Chad D. Baus is the Buckeye Firearms Association Vice Chairman.

by Larry S. Moore

The US Sportsmen's Alliance (USSA) recently held a legislative reception in Columbus. In addition to the USSA, the event was co-sponsored by the Buckeye Firearms Association. Buckeye volunteers attending the event included Linda Walker, Sean Maloney, Aaron Kirkingburg, Austin Force and this author. Also representing gun owners were several members of the Board of Directors of the Ohio Gun Collectors Association, including current President Jim Tekavec.

Sportsmen and conservation leaders from across Ohio converged on Columbus to meet with the legislators to discuss pressing hunting, fishing, trapping and conservation issues critical to the future of Ohio. Governor Kasich and the leadership of the Ohio Department of Natural Resources also attended the event.

Following the Pledge of Allegiance, led by ODNR Division of Wildlife Chief Scott Zody, Governor Kasich made some remarks to the group. The Governor noted the importance of legislators and sportsmen getting together to make their voices heard. Kasich commented, "Our natural resources are fantastic! We have to tell America what we have in Ohio. I don't think people understand all the great assets we have. Ohio is a great place to hunt and fish. There is so much more we can do to promote the outdoors. I see good common sense God-fearing conservative - and I don't mean Republican or Democrat - people here. This is what makes us great. The leadership in all these organizations is fantastic. You bring great joy with the love of all things outdoors but you also bring dollars to our state. That's why we have to reach out. I recently told our ODNR Director Jim Zehringer to think about it. The Lord created the creatures, the forests and the water. He wants it to be protected. The ODNR job is to manage it, ensure it grows and is healthy and successful. We need all your help. Sportsmen are not shy about expressing their views. You shouldn't be. You feel strongly about these things and are a bedrock of our state. I believe in what you are doing and your mission. I love the way you are great Ohioans and Americans. I'm proud to have the opportunity to be your Governor and tell the world what we have in Ohio."

by Chad D. Baus

The Akron Beacon-Journal is reporting that a recent Ohio School Board Association survey of school board members and superintendents found that about 40 percent felt safety measures at schools are not adequate.

From the article:

Some 25 percent in the survey felt their school buildings do "not have proper safety and security measures in place" and another 14 percent were "unsure" if their security is adequate.

...The survey also found that three in five districts that responded have no resource officers. Resource officers primarily serve as a visible police force and deterrent, but they also serve as a liaison to the local police department and a mentor to children.

Fortunately, Ohio law provides boards of education a zero-cost way to provide increased protection for the students in their care. All a school board has to do is to authorize the people they are already employing - people who have concealed handgun licenses and who carry them responsibly everywhere else in their life - to carry when they are in the school too.

Despite having this clear, simple, easy solution that has been proven to work to stop mass shootings and minimize the body count, the Ohio Senate appears prepared instead to back a proposal that would place a huge new tax burden on Buckeye state residents.

By Dean Rieck

On Saturday, March 16, 2013, Buckeye Firearms Foundation held its annual Buckeye Bash.

More than 450 Second Amendment supporters gathered at the Villa Milano to enjoy fellowship, food, and an evening filled with auctions and raffles to raise money for the Foundation's educational activities, including the Armed Teacher Training Program, which has made news nationwide and around the world.

Click here to see photos from the Bash.

Keynote speaker Dick Heller delivered a rousing account of the events leading up to District of Columbia v. Heller, the landmark case in which the Supreme Court of the United States held that the Second Amendment protects an individual’s right to possess a firearm for traditionally lawful purposes, such as self-defense. Today, he continues to fight for our freedom through The Heller Foundation, an advocacy organization challenging infringements of our Constitutional Rights to ”keep and bear arms” while promoting youth education and firearms safety programs.