July 30 and OFCC’s Party In The Park are rapidly approaching. If you have not already purchased your tickets, you should do so without further delay. While tickets will be on sale up until the day before the picnic, getting them early significantly reduces the possibility of computer problems in getting your name on the list and ensures that enough food will be on hand (the big reason).

We have several guns, a Ka-Bar knife and a lot of other door prizes to be awarded this year. While you can attend the picnic without a ticket, you need the ticket for the food line and to participate in the door prize drawings.

At the picnic, you can rub shoulders with Representative Danny Bubp and get the inside story of the drama concerning passage of the restaurant bill, corner Kevin Coughlin to see what his plans are to help gun owners if he wins the Ohio Senatorial election next year and see whether there are pro-gun politicians in Columbus by talking to Earl Smith who is running for Mayor. All three of these men will be speakers and will be available for attendees to meet and question.

Also, OFCC’s legal representatives will be speaking on updates on cases and how they affect us in our daily carry activities.

Click HERE for further details and to order tickets!

Less than two weeks ago, Wisconsin became the 49th state to legalize concealed carry and, as expected, the gloom and doomers are out in force. One such criticism is the claim that police officers will be in danger because they won't be able to access the Wisconsin Department of Justice list of permit holders.

"I have yet to speak with an officer over my 22 years as a prosecutor who doesn't want as much information as possible when responding to a call or performing a traffic stop, especially if that information indicates there may be a firearm present," said Sheboygan County District Attorney Joe DeCecco.

In response, Brown County Sheriff's Capt. Randy Schultz had this to say:

"It's not the law-abiding folks with permits that will hurt you, iIt's those that don't follow the law that are the ones that are going to hurt you."

The NRA-ILA is reporting on recent wins for gun rights in the U.S. Congress.

First was a House of Representatives Appropriations Committee amendment to the 2012 Commerce, Justice, Science and Related Agencies appropriations bill to block an attempt by the Obama Justice Department to require firearms dealers in southern border states to report any person who purchased more than one semi-automatic rifle with a detachable magazine to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives. This would have enabled the BATFE to create the first phase of a national gun registration database.

Rep. Denny Rehberg (R-Mont.), sponsor of the amendment, noted: “For more than a decade, efforts to track rifle purchases and create a national gun registry have failed to gain support in Congress, so the ATF is working to implement these regulations using rules written by unelected bureaucrats.”

In addition to the infringement on Second Amendment rights, the affected firearms dealers worried about the increased workload and potential unintentional technical violations that could result in large fines or loss of their Federal Firearms License.

Just over an hour ago I had the honor of watching Governor John Kasich sign Senate Bill 17 and House Bill 54 into law in the Cermony Signing room of the Ohio Statehouse in Columbus, Ohio.  I was joined today by our legislative coordinator Gary Witt, a long-time coordinator (and key HB203 architect) Mike Kinsey, and members of our legal counsel team including Mr. David Kessler, Esq. and Derek Debrosse, Esq.

Shortly after concealed carry became law in 2004 it became quite obvious that one of the biggest flaws in our law was the fact that you couldn't walk into most restaurants.  Within a year the Ohioans For Concealed Carry Board of Directors concluded that this topic was one of the most requested and sought after fixes from our supporters.  We regularly tried to make this an issue that got traction, but it always fell to the side of other equally important topics - such as statewide preemption.

Finally, in 2009, we wrote our own law and started shopping the concept to various law makers.   Since the day that the Legislative Services Counsel came back with our proposed legislation with virtually no changes this legislation has existed as a bill under consideration in one form or another.   As you read our website today you will find a story by Gary Witt that goes into the very nitty gritty details of what it took to make this law happen over the past three years.  If you appreciate the hard work and effort that went into this, help us grow our influence by signing up friends and family you see over the Fourth of July as members of Ohioans For Concealed Carry.

Finally, an article on our website by Phil Mulivor aims to explain to you exactly what is changing in Ohio law in an incredibly easy to read manner.  Watch for these to appear today on our website.

It is vital that you walk away with this understanding:  If the bill is filed with the Secretary of States office today (June 30th), I expect it to "go into effect" on Thursday, September 29th.   If the bill isn't considered filed until Friday (July 1st), I do not expect the bill to "go into effect" until Friday, September 30th -- what this basically means is DO NOT start carrying a firearm in your vehicle or a restaurant as if these new regulations exist, because "legal day one" is not until this fall.

As of 4:55pm the Secretary of State's office advised Ohioans For Concealed Carry they have not received the law.  Once that date is absolutely finalized by the Ohio Secretary of State's office we will publish it on our websites.

Left to right: Representative Danny Bubp, Gary Witt (behind), Nikki Goeser, Derek DeBrosse, Esq. ? (rear),
David Kessler, Esq. Governor John Kasich, ? (rear), Mike Kinsey, Jeff Garvas, Representative Schaffer, ?, ?