There is movement afoot on our long-sought ability to carry in National Parks. As you know, federal law restricts law-abiding citizens from having a firearm there for self defense... even with a valid Concealed Handgun License.
Forty-seven Senators (at the time of the writing) led by Senator Crapo have sent a letter to the Department of the Interior asking for the federal government to leave this decision to the states. Many states do not prohibit carrying in National Forests and other federal lands for which they can make this decision.
Please take a moment to write a letter to Senators Voinovich and Brown either in your own words, or using the sample letter below. Simply copy and paste it into the contact forms at the links provided. Any responses received can be placed in our popular so that we can all be aware of our elected representatives' intentions.
Contact Submission form for Senator Voinovich can be found HERE.
Here is a copy of the letter that Senators are sending to the Dept. of the Interior:
Dear Secretary Kempthorne:
We write today concerning a longstanding effort to have the National
Park Service and
the Fish and Wildlife Service remove their prohibitions on law-abiding
citizens from
transporting and carrying firearms on lands managed by these agencies.
We appeal to
you on this matter in the interest of Second Amendment rights and
consistency in
firearms policy across federal public land management agencies.
As you know, 36 CFR 2.4, applicable to the National Park Service, and
50 CFR 27.42,
applicable to the Fish and Wildlife Service, prohibits individuals
from possessing a
firearm on lands managed by those agencies - even citizens with valid
concealed
weapons permits.
These regulations infringe on the rights of law-abiding gun owners,
who wish to
transport and carry firearms on or across these lands. Also, you will
note that other
federal land management agencies, such as the Bureau of Land
Management and the
Forest Service allow transporting and carrying of firearms on these
lands in accordance
with the laws of the host state. These inconsistencies in firearms
regulations for public
lands are confusing, burdensome, and unnecessary.
For these reasons, we support an exception to 36 CFR 2.4 and 50 CFR
27.42 to allow
law-abiding citizens to transport and carry firearms consistent with
state law where the
National Park Service's sites and the National Wildlife Refuges are
located. Such
regulatory changes would respect the Second Amendment rights of law-
abiding gun
owners, while providing a consistent application of state weapons laws
across all land
ownership boundaries.
We appreciate the opportunity to share our concerns with you. Please
treat this letter in
conformance with all applicable procedural rules and ethical guidelines.
