In the Wrong Hands

Sen. Van de Putte

"I got an amendment!" Sen. Leticia Van de Putte, D-San Antonio, excitedly announced after Senate Bill 1164, the "guns in university buildings" bill, passed out of the Senate this morning on a 20-11 vote (initially mis-announced as 19-12 by the clerk.)

It was a bitter-sweet moment for Van de Putte, since she opposes the bill. What she got was an exemption for teaching hospitals (private schools already have one.) Since they're a medical facility, and not technically covered by the education code, she managed to slide them out, so there'd be no guns in the ER.

Talking to Van de Putte yesterday after second vote, she made her big worry clear: While many bill opponents are concerned that letting concealed handguns in dorms and labs will end their record of being the safest place for students to be, she was worried about mental health issues. Even with HB 3352 by Rep. Elliott Naishtat, D-Austin, adding mental health as part of the background check criteria for firearms purchases, she's worried about mentally or emotionally unstable students getting access to their fellow students' or room-mates' weapons and committing suicide (Promised amendments for gunlockers in dorms never materialized.)

With such major concerns, and big issues like the budget and voter ID still pending, a House hearing could be a distant possibility.