Potential buyers try out guns which are displayed on an exhibitor’s table during the Nation’s Gun Show. (Photo by Alex Wong, Getty Images)
The measures provide protections from requirements gun owners were unlikely to face
Last week Gov. Mike DeWine signed a measure into law prohibiting Ohio financial institutions from using a separate merchant code for gun shops or requiring gun owners to purchase liability insurance. The measure also prohibits governments or agencies from maintaining a list of gun owners.
Similar merchant code prohibitions have passed in more than 15 other states. But notably, the bill’s sponsors did not identify a single Ohio entity considering an insurance requirement or ownership list. As such, the proposal’s purpose appears geared toward burnishing lawmakers’ pro-gun bona fides.
And it offers a potential answer for where messaging legislation goes when state leaders have already embraced almost every policy firearm enthusiasts could ask for. With state law already endorsing stand your ground, arming teachers, and permitless carry, lawmakers are left to chase hypothetical threats to the Second Amendment.
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Last minute amendments
The measure Gov. DeWine signed brought together two standalone pieces of firearm legislation late in the session. After those bills were combined House lawmakers proposed tacking on another piece legislation known as the Second Amendment Preservation Act.
Furious at restrictions imposed by the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms, sponsors proposed stripping out all reference to federal firearm provisions in state law in a bid to bar local police forces from assisting federal agencies. They pitched the proposal as an “anti-commandeering” bill — i.e. prohibiting federal officials from using local authorities to enforce federal laws.
But the measure went a few steps further. The initial version sought to inscribe the sponsors’ interpretation of the Second Amendment in state law, a task typically reserved for the courts. With those “infringements” codified, local police departments could face stiff fines for any purported violations. Departments could even be fined for hiring someone who previously worked for a federal agency.
Opponents warned the proposal would cripple task forces fighting drug and human trafficking and undermine tools like the ballistics database authorities rely on in gun violence cases. The Missouri law on which it’s modeled was struck down in federal court, and last year a federal appeals court unanimously upheld that decision.
The House floor amendment adding those provisions to the bill failed.
What now?
Dean Rieck who heads up the Buckeye Firearms Association praised DeWine for signing the measure prohibiting liability insurance and tracking ownership.
He framed the underlying provisions as “fight(ing) recent efforts by gun control advocates to make gun ownership more expensive and less private for law-abiding gun owners instead of cracking down on the actual criminal misuse of firearms.”
As for his organization’s priorities going forward, he said they’d fight “against Second Amendment infringements” and urge both parties to prioritize measures holding violent criminals accountable.
The Second Amendment Preservation Act was a major priority for the organization Ohio Gun Owners. On social media, the group’s president Chris Dorr argued the Republican members who voted against the amendment should face primary challenges. The group later made member-specific thank you posts for the 32 Republicans who wanted to pass the provisions.
A central premise of the measure was that state law can be leveraged to blunt the impact of federal firearm regulations by depriving agencies of local assistance. But even with a conservative, gun-friendly administration taking office, Dorr said it’s just as important to pass the bill.
“It is critical that the General Assembly pass the Ohio Second Amendment Protection Act during the Trump Administration years so that, with a Second-Amendment-friendly Department of Justice, that law can get on the books and stay on the books long after President Trump is gone from the White House,” he argued.
Dorr said they’re expecting to run it back in the coming General Assembly and although he declined to name them, said they’ve got a sponsor. As for their other priorities, he described even greater “stand your ground” protections and the right to “carry, transport or possess any lawful weapon” an Ohioan owns, rather than just handguns.
But for the time being, he emphasized their happiness with DeWine signing any firearm legislation.
“Legislation like this is exactly the kind of legislation the Ohio General Assembly should be putting on his desk in response to the attacks big corporations have leveled against conservative America,” he said.
What opponents think
For organizers pushing for greater gun restrictions, lawmakers eventually balking at the most sweeping proposal doesn’t get chalked up as a win.
During the past session, Democrats proposed a handful of measures exerting a modicum of control over gun sales or promoting gun safety. One bill proposed a 10-day waiting period for gun sales. Another would’ve eliminated taxes on gun locks and other safety devices. The most sweeping proposal would’ve rolled back the law allowing Ohioans to carry concealed weapons without a permit. None of them passed.
Everytown for Gun Safety Senior Counsel Alison Shih criticized the bill DeWine approved last week and derided lawmakers’ months-long debate over the Second Amendment Preservation Act.
“This is a perfect example of what gun rights extremists in Ohio, led by Governor DeWine, love doing,” she argued. “Instead of taking action to end the gun violence crisis — which is killing children and teens more than anything else in this country — in pushing bills like a Second Amendment Preservation Act, lawmakers are creating a culture of fear by inventing some nonsensical ominous boogeyman coming to steal their rights.”
“These lawmakers seem more interested in protecting violence than victims,” she added. “Instead of creating even a moderate culture of responsible gun ownership, these gun extremist lawmakers are sacrificing Ohioan family lives.”
Follow Ohio Capital Journal Reporter Nick Evans on X or on Bluesky.
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