(The Center Square) – Gun owners would have to lock up their firearms anywhere they are under a measure that passed the Illinois Senate late Thursday.
Senate Bill 8 found lopsided support among the public. As of Thursday evening, 710 individuals filed witness slips in favor. About 3,200 people filed in opposition. The deadline to move the bill to the House was Friday.
“The act does not apply in instances of self defense or unlawful entry onto those premises,” said bill sponsor state Sen. Laura Ellman, D-Naperville. “It amends the Criminal Code of 2012 similarly to provide that it is unlawful for any person to store or leave a firearm if the person knows or reasonably should know that a minor who does not have a [Firearm Owner’s ID] card is likely to gain access.”
Minor is defined in the bill as anyone under 18.
Opposing the measure in committee, gun rights advocate Todd Vandermyde said it goes beyond just requiring safe storage by adding penalties for if a stolen firearm is used against someone else.
“So if a report is filed and it’s a petty offense, you’re now lowering the bar to losing a constitutional right based on a petty offense,” Vandermyde told the committee. “I think that is some very intriguing new ground.”
Meanwhile, Illinois homeschool families continue to push back on a proposed measure to regulate their activity.
The Illinois House has passed hundreds of bills so far this week. They have a Friday deadline to pass House bills over to the Senate. One of those could be House Bill 2827, known as the Homeschool Act.
Last month, after a standing-room-only hearing, the measure advanced out of committee. An amendment was filed this week. Urban Center’s Juan Rangel said it’s still a bad bill.
“A truant officer who has the terrifying power to refer a family for prosecution to a state’s attorney will have an in person meeting with their minor child. There is nothing in this amendment protecting the sanctity of the family’s home, which raises Fourth Amendment concerns,” Rangel said during a news conference Thursday alongside homeschool families.
Supporters of the measure argue there needs to be oversight of homeschool families to ensure children being homeschooled are properly educated and are not being neglected or abused.
As of Thursday evening, 1,080 individuals have filed in support of the Homeschool Act. Nearly 42,400 people have filed in opposition.
Legislators return Friday for floor action, but both chambers are off next week. The scheduled end of session is May 31.
