At Thursday evening’s Hays City Commission Meeting, the city commission heard a proposal from Hays Police Chief Don Scheibler for exemption from a new conceal carry law.  When it came to a vote, the proposal failed with a vote of 2-2.  Commissioner Musil, who would have been the tie breaking vote, was not in attendance at the meeting.  As Chief Scheibler pointed out, this means that after December 31st, the signage prohibiting guns inside public buildings will need to be taken down.

Scheibler presented information based on House Bill 2052 which the Kansas Legislature passed earlier this year.  The bill allows for any of the following:

• Allow concealed weapons to be inside public buildings that previously were off-limits to all firearms, including city owned structures.
• Prohibit the concealed carry of firearms and install adequate security measures at each public entrance along with staff to maintain the safety of the building occupants
• Seek a 4-year exemption from the law, enabling exempted buildings to refrain from installing the security measures while still prohibiting concealed carry licensees from carrying handguns into the building.

Scheibler illustrated in his presentation that the cost of the second option would be around $60,000 for equipment installation and $675,000 a year in staffing.  He added that other comparably-sized towns were seeking a four year exemption from the law, which was his recommendation to the commission.

Commissioner Henry Schwaller IV and Mayor Kent Steward both objected to the four year exemption.

Schwaller spoke first, stating that law abiding citizens who go to the trouble of acquiring a conceal carry permit aren’t the one’s this law was designed to protect against.  Holding up a “no guns” sign, he added that the best way to ensure safety in over half of the city’s buildings is to restrict public access.

“Quite frankly, with this sign, that doesn’t keep someone out with a gun. And I think it would be better for employee safety to close down the building where the public doesn’t have to go in and then consider what security measures we could use at the other buildings if necessary.”

He added that while this law is confusing, he didn’t believe the right thing to do was to “kick it down the road four years” for the commission to decide then.

Steward added that gun violence is a real problem, but he called the idea of a plastic decal protecting people from an “armed, homicidal maniac” laughable.  He referred to the four year exemption as an irresponsible stalling tactic.

Commissioner Phelps and Mellick both echoed the same sentiment: an exemption from the law (which they both stated was poorly written) was the only way to avoid falling under guidance of a law that will more than likely be revisited and clarified in the near future.

Mellick and Phelps voted to approve the exemption, while Steward and Schwaller were opposed to the motion.