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kf5nd wrote:Bladed,

Is is worth considering to ask Gov. Perry to put knife pre-emption into the Special Legislative Session? Is that within the realm of feasibility such that we should ask people to ask the Governor, or do we have to wait until 2015?

Peter

I don't think there is much chance he'll add knife preemption on its own (special session calls are typically pretty narrow), but if he adds any firearm/concealed carry issues, there is a small possibility that knife preemption could be attached to one of those bills. We'll have to wait and see what is included in the call.

Jumping Frog wrote:Too bad we didn't get knife preemption.

Next time.

HB 1862 (decriminalization of switchblades) is off to Governor Perry!

ELB wrote:So HB 1862, the switchblade bill, was placed on the Senate "local and uncontested calendar" yesterday. It has already been read once (in the Senate), sent to committee, passed favorably out of committee, and onto the aforementioned calendar.

So is this thing still alive, chance for passage, or it is being left to die?

Yesterday's Local and Uncontested calendar got held over until today. The bill is still alive for a few more hours.

Senator Whitmire's office says that the bill will receive a vote tomorrow.

HB 1862 received a committee hearing today BUT NOT A COMMITTEE VOTE. If it doesn't receive a vote by Saturday, it dies, and there are rumors that Chairman Whitmire may let it die.

Please call Senator Whitmire, and POLITELY ask that he give House Bill 1862 a committee vote!

Senator John Whitmire (D) - 512-463-0115v / 512-475-3737f / john.whitmire@senate.state.tx.us

Remember, you can send a free fax from http://FaxZero.com" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;.

Great work, everybody! HB 1862 is scheduled for a Senate committee hearing at 1:30 PM (or upon adjournment of the Senate) tomorrow.

HB 1862 only has until this coming Saturday (May 18) to get voted out of committee in the Senate! If it hasn't been voted out by then, it dies.

If you want to see this bill pass, this is what you need to do:

STEP 1 - Contact Rep. Dutton, the bill's author, and ask him to request a Senate committee hearing for HB 1862 (be friendly--he's on our side). A phone call or fax is preferable to an email. If you call, simply voice your request to the intern/aide who answers. If you email or fax, be sure to include your full name, address, and phone number.

Rep. Harold Dutton (D) - 512-463-0510v / 512-463-8333f / harold.dutton@house.state.tx.us

STEP 2 - Contact the Chair and Vice Chair of the Senate Committee on Criminal Justice, and ask them to schedule HB 1862 for a committee hearing as soon as possible (be nice--we need their support). A phone call or fax is preferable to an email. If you call, simply voice your request to the intern/aide who answers. If you email or fax, be sure to include your full name, address, and phone number.

Chairman John Whitmire (D) - 512-463-0115v / 512-475-3737f / john.whitmire@senate.state.tx.us

Vice Chairwoman Joan Huffman (R) - 512-463-0117v / 512-463-0639f / joan.huffman@senate.state.tx.us

Remember, you can send five free faxes per day from http://faxzero.com" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;.

HB 1299 has been scheduled as the absolute last bill on the House calendar. That's how the Calendars Committee keeps their hands clean while deliberately killing a bill.

In the history of the Texas House, they've probably never once gotten to the last bill on the calendar before time ran out.

Bladed wrote:The Calendars Committee meets in one hour. If they don't schedule HB 1299 tonight or tomorrow, it won't get a floor vote before time runs out.

There is still time to call/fax/email!

The Calendars Committee meets in one hour. If they don't schedule HB 1299 tonight or tomorrow, it won't get a floor vote before time runs out.

For all intents and purposes, this weekend is the last chance for the Texas House Committee on Calendars to schedule HB 1299 for a vote. Please take ONE MINUTE to send a single email to the entire committee, urging them to place the bill on the House calendar as soon as possible. Be sure to include your full name, address, and phone number, or they won't record your opinion. Here is the email list for the committee:

todd.hunter@house.state.tx.us
eddie.lucio_iii@house.state.tx.us
roberto.alonzo@house.state.tx.us
carol.alvarado@house.state.tx.us
dan.branch@house.state.tx.us
angie.button@house.state.tx.us
byron.cook@house.state.tx.us
myra.crownover@house.state.tx.us
sarah.davis@house.state.tx.us
craig.eiland@house.state.tx.us
john.frullo@house.state.tx.us
charlie.geren@house.state.tx.us
helen.giddings@house.state.tx.us
john.kuempel@house.state.tx.us
doug.miller@house.state.tx.us

HB 1862, the switchblade bill, has been placed on the House calendar for this coming Monday. Please do the following:

1. Call or write your State Representative, and encourage him/her to support HB 1862.
2. Call or write the members of the Calendars Committee (particularly the chair and vice-chair), thank them for scheduling HB 1862 for a floor vote, and urge them to schedule HB 1299 for a vote ASAP.

Please take two minutes to send a free online fax to Texas Representative Todd Hunter, Chairman of the Texas House Committee on Calendars, asking him to schedule House Bills 1299 and 1862 for a floor vote. Remember, HB 1299 would prohibit municipalities from regulating knives, electric stun guns, or personal defense sprays, in the same way municipalities are currently prohibited from regulating firearms. HB 1862 would decriminalize the possession/carrying of an automatic, or switchblade, knife.

Send the fax from this page (it's free): http://www.FaxZero.com/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Send it to this fax number: 512-463-2101
Address it to: Representative Todd Hunter
What to say: Tell Representative Hunter (in as few or as many words as you like) that you would like the Calendars Committee to place HB 1299 and HB 1862 on the House calendar as soon as possible.
What to include: Be sure to include your full name, address, phone number, and email address.

If you also want to send a (separate) fax to Representative Eddie Lucio III, Vice Chairman of the Texas House Committee on Calendars, his fax number is 512-463-0660.