Stricken language would be deleted from and underlined language would be added to present law.
1 State of Arkansas
2 92nd General Assembly A Bill
3 Regular Session, 2019 SENATE BILL 614
4
5 By: Senator G. Stubblefield
6 By: Representative Womack
7
8 For An Act To Be Entitled
9 AN ACT TO ELIMINATE GUN-FREE ZONES; TO REPEAL LAWS IN
10 CONFLICT; AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES.
11
12
13 Subtitle
14 TO ELIMINATE GUN-FREE ZONES; AND TO
15 REPEAL LAWS IN CONFLICT.
16
17
18 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ARKANSAS:
19
20 SECTION 1. DO NOT CODIFY. Legislative intent.
21 The intent of this act is to provide for the safety of the public by
22 eliminating gun-free zones.
23
24 SECTION 2. Arkansas Code 5-73-119 is amended to read as follows:
25 5-73-119. Handguns Possession by minor or possession on school
26 property.
27 (a)(1)(A) No A person in this state under eighteen (18) years of age
28 shall not possess a handgun.
29 (2)(A)(B)(i) A violation of subdivision (a)(1)(A) of this
30 section is a Class A misdemeanor.
31 (B)(ii) A violation of subdivision (a)(1)(A) of this
32 section is a Class D felony if the person has previously:
33 (i)(a) Been adjudicated delinquent for a
34 violation of subdivision (a)(1)(A) of this section;
35 (ii)(b) Been adjudicated delinquent for any
36 offense that would be a felony if committed by an adult; or
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1 (iii)(c) Pleaded guilty or nolo contendere to or
2 been found guilty of a felony in circuit court while under eighteen (18)
3 years of age.
4 (2)(A) A person shall not possess a firearm inside a public
5 school facility, kindergarten through grade twelve (K-12), except as
6 otherwise provided for in this section.
7 (B) A violation of subdivision (a)(2)(A) of this section
8 is a Class C misdemeanor.
9 (b)(1) No A person in this state less than twenty-one (21) years of
10 age shall not possess a firearm:
11 (A) Upon upon the developed property of a public or
12 private school, kindergarten through grade twelve (K-12);.
13 (B) In or upon any school bus; or
14 (C) At a designated bus stop as identified on the route
15 list published by a school district each year.
16 (2)(A) A violation of subdivision (b)(1) of this section is a
17 Class D felony.
18 (B) No sentence imposed for a violation of subdivision
19 (b)(1) of this section shall be suspended or probated or treated as a first
20 offense under 16-93-301 et seq.
21 (c)(1) Except as provided in 5-73-322, a person in this state shall
22 not possess a handgun upon the property of any private institution of higher
23 education or a publicly supported institution of higher education in this
24 state on or about his or her person, in a vehicle occupied by him or her, or
25 otherwise readily available for use with a purpose to employ the handgun as a
26 weapon against a person.
27 (2) A violation of subdivision (c)(1) of this section is a Class
28 D felony.
29 (d)(c) Handgun means a firearm capable of firing rimfire ammunition
30 or centerfire ammunition and designed or constructed to be fired with one (1)
31 hand.
32 (e)(d) It is permissible to carry a handgun under this section if at
33 the time of the act of possessing a handgun or firearm:
34 (1) The person is in his or her own dwelling or place of
35 business or on property in which he or she has a possessory or proprietary
36 interest, except upon the property of a public or private institution of
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1 higher learning;
2 (2) The person is a law enforcement officer, correctional
3 officer, or member of the armed forces acting in the course and scope of his
4 or her official duties;
5 (3) The person is assisting a law enforcement officer,
6 correctional officer, or member of the armed forces acting in the course and
7 scope of his or her official duties pursuant to the direction or request of
8 the law enforcement officer, correctional officer, or member of the armed
9 forces;
10 (4) The person is a registered commissioned security guard
11 acting in the course and scope of his or her duties;
12 (5) The person is hunting game with a handgun or firearm that
13 may be hunted with a handgun or firearm under the rules and regulations of
14 the Arkansas State Game and Fish Commission or is en route to or from a
15 hunting area for the purpose of hunting game with a handgun or firearm;
16 (6) The person is a certified law enforcement officer;
17 (7) The person is on a journey beyond the county in which the
18 person lives, unless the person is eighteen (18) years of age or less;
19 (8) The person is participating in a certified hunting safety
20 course sponsored by the commission or a firearm safety course recognized and
21 approved by the commission or by a state or national nonprofit organization
22 qualified and experienced in firearm safety;
23 (9) The person is participating in a school-approved educational
24 course or sporting activity involving the use of firearms;
25 (10) The person is a minor engaged in lawful marksmanship
26 competition or practice or other lawful recreational shooting under the
27 supervision of his or her parent, legal guardian, or other person twenty-one
28 (21) years of age or older standing in loco parentis or is traveling to or
29 from a lawful marksmanship competition or practice or other lawful
30 recreational shooting with an unloaded handgun or firearm accompanied by his
31 or her parent, legal guardian, or other person twenty-one (21) years of age
32 or older standing in loco parentis;
33 (11) The person has a license to carry a concealed handgun under
34 5-73-301 et seq. and is carrying a concealed handgun on the developed
35 property of:
36 (A) A kindergarten through grade twelve (K-12) private
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1 school operated by a church or other place of worship that:
2 (i) Is located on the developed property of the
3 kindergarten through grade twelve (K-12) private school;
4 (ii) Allows the person to carry a concealed handgun
5 into the church or other place of worship under 5-73-306; and
6 (iii) Allows the person to possess a concealed
7 handgun on the developed property of the kindergarten through grade twelve
8 (K-12) private school; or
9 (B) A kindergarten through grade twelve (K-12) private
10 school or a prekindergarten private school that through its governing board
11 or director has set forth the rules and circumstances under which the
12 licensee may carry a concealed handgun into a building or event of the
13 kindergarten through grade twelve (K-12) private school or the
14 prekindergarten private school; or
15 (12)(A) The person has a license to carry a concealed handgun under
16 5-73-301 et seq. and is carrying a concealed handgun in his or her motor
17 vehicle or has left the concealed handgun in his or her locked and unattended
18 motor vehicle in a publicly owned and maintained parking lot.
19 (B)(i) As used in this subdivision (e)(12)(d)(12), parking lot
20 means a designated area or structure or part of a structure intended for the
21 parking of motor vehicles or a designated drop-off zone for children at a
22 school.
23 (ii) Parking lot does not include a parking lot owned,
24 maintained, or otherwise controlled by the Department of Correction or
25 Department of Community Correction.
26
27 SECTION 3. Arkansas Code 5-73-122 is repealed.
28 5-73-122. Carrying a firearm in publicly owned buildings or facilities.
29 (a)(1) Except as provided in 5-73-322, 5-73-306(5), 16-21-147,
30 and this section, it is unlawful for any person other than a law enforcement
31 officer or a security guard in the employ of the state or an agency of the
32 state, or any city or county, or any state or federal military personnel, to
33 knowingly carry or possess a loaded firearm or other deadly weapon in any
34 publicly owned building or facility or on the State Capitol grounds.
35 (2) It is unlawful for any person other than a law enforcement
36 officer or a security guard in the employ of the state or an agency of the
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1 state, or any city or county, or any state or federal military personnel, to
2 knowingly carry or possess a firearm, whether loaded or unloaded, in the
3 State Capitol Building or the Arkansas Justice Building in Little Rock.
4 (3) However, this subsection does not apply to a person carrying
5 or possessing a firearm or other deadly weapon in a publicly owned building
6 or facility or on the State Capitol grounds:
7 (A) For the purpose of participating in a shooting match
8 or target practice under the auspices of the agency responsible for the
9 publicly owned building or facility or State Capitol grounds;
10 (B) If necessary to participate in a trade show, exhibit,
11 or educational course conducted in the publicly owned building or facility or
12 on the State Capitol grounds;
13 (C)(i) If the person has a license to carry a concealed
14 handgun under 5-73-301 et seq. and is carrying a concealed handgun in his
15 or her motor vehicle or has left the concealed handgun in his or her locked
16 and unattended motor vehicle in a publicly owned and maintained parking lot.
17 (ii)(a) As used in this subdivision (a)(3)(C),
18 parking lot means a designated area or structure or part of a structure
19 intended for the parking of motor vehicles or a designated drop-off zone for
20 children at school.
21 (b) Parking lot does not include a parking
22 lot owned, maintained, or otherwise controlled by the Department of
23 Correction or the Department of Community Correction;
24 (D) If the person has completed the required training and
25 received a concealed carry endorsement under 5-73-322(g) and the place is
26 not:
27 (i) A courtroom or the location of an administrative
28 hearing conducted by a state agency, except as permitted by 5-73-306(5) or
29 5-73-306(6);
30 (ii) A public school kindergarten through grade
31 twelve (K-12), a public prekindergarten, or a public daycare facility, except
32 as permitted under subdivision (a)(3)(C) of this section;
33 (iii) A facility operated by the Department of
34 Correction or the Department of Community Correction; or
35 (iv) A posted firearm-sensitive area, as approved by
36 the Department of Arkansas State Police under 5-73-325, located at:
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1 (a) The Arkansas State Hospital;
2 (b) The University of Arkansas for Medical
3 Sciences; or
4 (c) A collegiate athletic event; or
5 (E) If the person has a license to carry a concealed
6 handgun under 5-73-301 et seq., is a justice of the Supreme Court or a
7 judge on the Court of Appeals, and is carrying a concealed handgun in the
8 Arkansas Justice Building.
9 (4) As used in this section, facility means a municipally
10 owned or maintained park, football field, baseball field, soccer field, or
11 another similar municipally owned or maintained recreational structure or
12 property.
13 (b) However, a law enforcement officer, officer of the court, bailiff,
14 or any other person authorized by the court is permitted to possess a handgun
15 in the courtroom of any court or a courthouse of this state.
16 (c) A person violating this section upon conviction is guilty of a
17 prohibit the possession of a firearm on the private landowner's property; or
18 Class C misdemeanor.
19
20 SECTION 4. Arkansas Code 5-73-127 is repealed.
21 5-73-127. Possession of loaded center-fire weapons in certain areas.
22 (a) It is unlawful to possess a loaded center-fire weapon, other than
23 a shotgun and other than in a residence or business of the owner, in the
24 following areas:
25 (1) Baxter County:
26 (A) That part bounded on the south by Highway 178, on the
27 west and north by Bull Shoals Lake, and on the east by the Central Electric
28 Power Corporation transmission line from Howard Creek to Highway 178;
29 (B) That part of Bidwell Point lying south of the east-
30 west road which crosses Highway 101 at the Presbyterian Church;
31 (C) That part of Bidwell Point lying west of Bennett's
32 Bayou and north of the east-west road which crosses Highway 101 at the
33 Presbyterian Church;
34 (D) That part of Baxter County between:
35 (i) County Road 139 and Lake Norfork to the north
36 and west;
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1 (ii) County Road 151 and Lake Norfork to the north,
2 west, and south in the Diamond Bay area;
3 (iii) The Bluff Road and Lake Norfork to the west;
4 (iv) John Lewis Road (Timber Lake Manor) and Lake
5 Norfork to the west and south;
6 (v) The south end of County Road 91 south of its
7 intersection with John Lewis Road and Lake Norfork to the south and east; and
8 (vi) County Road 150 from its intersection with
9 County Road 93 south and Lake Norfork to the south and east but not east of
10 County Road 93;
11 (2) Benton County:
12 (A) That part of the Hobbs Estate north of State Highway
13 12, west of Rambo Road, and south and east of Van Hollow Creek and the Van
14 Hollow Creek arm of Beaver Lake;
15 (B) All of Bella Vista Village; and
16 (C) That part bounded on the north by Beaver Lake, on the
17 east by Beaver Lake, on the south by the Hobbs State Management Area boundary
18 from the intersection of State Highway 12 eastward along the boundary to its
19 intersection with the Van Hollow Creek arm of Beaver Lake;
20 (3) Benton and Carroll Counties: That part bounded on the north
21 by Highway 62, on the east by Highway 187 and Henry Hollow Creek, and the
22 south and west by Beaver Lake and the road from Beaver Dam north to Highway
23 62;
24 (4) Conway County: That part lying above the rimrock of Petit
25 Jean Mountain;
26 (5) Garland County: All of Hot Springs Village and Diamondhead;
27 (6) Marion County:
28 (A) That part known as Bull Shoals Peninsula, bounded on
29 the east and north by White River and Lake Bull Shoals, on the west by the
30 Jimmie Creek arm of Lake Bull Shoals, and on the south by the municipal
31 boundaries of the City of Bull Shoals;
32 (B) That part of Marion County bounded on the north, west,
33 and south by Bull Shoals Lake and on the east by County Roads 355 and 322
34 from their intersections with State Highway 202 to the points where they
35 respectively dead-end at arms of Bull Shoals Lake;
36 (C) The Yocum Bend Peninsula of Bull Shoals Lake bounded
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1 on the north and east by Bull Shoals Lake, on the west by Pine Mountain and
2 Bull Shoals Lake, and on the south by County Road 30; and
3 (D) Those lands situated in Marion County known as the
4 Frost Point Peninsula, not inundated by the waters of Bull Shoals Lake, being
5 more particularly described as follows:
6 (i)