[WhiteFeather]

For everyone that wrote a letter supporting this change

A BIG THANK YOU your letters made the differance.

Thank you to all the people that worked with the elected Reps to make this common sense change in our national parks.

National Parks Concealed Carry Victory


National Parks Victory!



Not only did we get corrective legislation removing the restriction on concealed carry in State Parks this year, but we’ve also gained victory in our National Parks!



From: Virginia Citizens Defense League, Inc. (VCDL)VCDL is an all-volunteer, non-partisan grassroots organization dedicated to defending the human rights of all Virginians. The Right to Keep and Bear Arms is a fundamental human right. VCDL web page: http://www.vcdl.org
The two Petitions for Rule Making that the Virginia Citizens Defense League, Inc. (VCDL) submitted to the Department of the Interior helped push this issue forward!

This is a STRONG win for gun owners with concealed handgun permits or for those gun owners in states that don't need permits to carry concealed!!! And there’s no “state park” contingency.

Basically, if a state allows a person to carry a concealed, loaded, operable handgun, then that person can carry a concealed, loaded, operable handgun in a National Park.

We were concerned that the proposed regulation had an "analogous lands" provision, but it is gone!

Here is a link to the press release:

http://www.doi.gov/news/08_News_Releases/120508.html

Here is a link to the final rule:

http://www.doi.gov/issues/Final%20Rule.pdf

Here is the new regulation:

Title 36 - Parks, Forests, and Public Property

Chapter 1 - National Park Service, DOI

Part 2 - Resource Protection, Public Use, and Recreation

2.4 Weapons traps and nets. (new paragraph (h))

(h) Notwithstanding any other provision in this Chapter, a person may possess, carry, and transport concealed, loaded, and operable firearms within a national park area in accordance with the laws of the state in which the national park area, or that portion thereof, is located, except as otherwise prohibited by applicable federal law."

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DO **NOT** CARRY IN NATIONAL PARKS OR NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGES YET!

The new ruling will take effect 30 days AFTER it appears in the Federal Register next week. So, I would say it will be effective no
later than January 12th!

Here is a story from the AP:

http://tinyurl.com/68kdgo

Dec 5, 2:54 PM EST

New rule eases ban on firearms in national parks

By MATTHEW DALY
Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON (AP) -- People will now be able to carry concealed firearms in some national parks and wildlife refuges.

An Interior Department rule issued Friday allows an individual to carry a loaded weapon in a park or wildlife refuge - but only if the person has a permit for a concealed weapon, and if the state where the park or refuge is located also allows loaded firearms in parks.

The rule overturns a Reagan-era regulation that has restricted loaded guns in parks and wildlife refuges. The previous regulations required that firearms be unloaded and placed somewhere that is not easily accessible, such as in a car trunk.

Assistant Interior Secretary Lyle Laverty said the new rule respects a long tradition of states and the federal government working together on natural resource issues.

The regulation allows individuals to carry concealed firearms in federal parks and wildlife refuges to the same extent they can
lawfully do so under state law, Laverty said, adding that the approach is in line with rules adopted by the federal Bureau of Land Management and the U.S. Forest Service. Those agencies let visitors carry weapons consistent with applicable federal and state laws.

The National Rifle Association hailed the rule change, which will take effect next month before President-elect Barack Obama takes office.

"We are pleased that the Interior Department recognizes the right of law-abiding citizens to protect themselves and their families while enjoying America's national parks and wildlife refuges," said Chris W. Cox, the NRA's chief lobbyist.

The rule will restore the rights of law-abiding gun owners on federal lands and make federal law consistent with the state where the lands are located, Cox said. The NRA led efforts to change gun regulations they called inconsistent and unclear.

A group representing park rangers, retirees and conservation organizations said the rule change will lead to confusion for
visitors, rangers and other law enforcement agencies.

"Once again, political leaders in the Bush administration have ignored the preferences of the American public by succumbing to political pressure, in this case generated by the National Rifle Association," said Bill Wade, president of the Coalition of National Park Service Retirees.

"This regulation will put visitors, employees and precious resources of the National Park System at risk. We will do everything possible to overturn it and return to a commonsense approach to guns in national parks that has been working for decades," Wade said.

The park rule will be published in the Federal Register next week and take effect 30 days later, well before Obama takes office Jan. 20. Overturning the rule could take months or even years, since it would require the new administration to restart the lengthy rule-making process.

this one from Second Amendment by the Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms

NEWS RELEASE
CCRKBA HAILS INTERIOR DEPT. RULING ON CONCEALED CARRY IN NATIONAL PARKS
BELLEVUE, WA – Today’s announcement that the Interior Department has amended its rules and will henceforth allow licensed concealed carry in national parks was hailed as a victory for the Second Amendment by the Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms.

“No longer will American citizens be required to leave their right of self-defense at the gates of a national park,” said CCRKBA Chairman Alan Gottlieb. “This common-sense change in regulations reflects not only changes in the laws of 48 states, but more importantly the Supreme Court’s ruling in June that upheld the individual right to keep and bear arms that is protected by the Second Amendment.”

Under the rule change, individuals may carry concealed handguns in national parks and wildlife refuges only if they are licensed to carry under the laws of the state in which the park or refuge is located. This new rule does not allow the illegal carrying of any firearm, nor will it allow hunting, target practice or poaching.

“We are delighted that the Interior Department has taken this step,” Gottlieb stated. “This was never an issue of opening parks to hunting or recreational shooting, and the extremist opponents of this measure know it. This has always been about personal protection in areas where law enforcement may be hours away, or not available at all, in an emergency.

“As with the adoption of concealed carry laws in dozens of states over the past several years,” he added, “we are confident that passage of time will prove that all the alarmist rhetoric about poaching and increase danger to families and especially children was deliberately misleading.

“With the nation facing drastic budget cuts,” Gottlieb said, “this rule change comes at the right moment. It recognizes the inability of park officials to provide adequate law enforcement services, particularly in the back country. We are confident that passage of time will prove that this rule change, like the adoption of sensible concealed carry laws in dozens of states over the past 20 years, improves public safety and deters criminal behavior.”