The Vermont House on Thursday gave preliminary approval to legislation banning guns from hospitals and strengthening background checks for those purchasing firearms. The vote was 97-49 in favor.
A more limited version of the bill, S.30, passed the Senate in March, but the House tacked on a provision closing the “Charleston Loophole.” That allows a person to buy a gun whether or not they pass a federal background check if the check takes longer than three days. The legislation would require a buyer to wait up to 30 days if a background check is not completed.
Though the bill has been favored by gun-control advocates, it includes a concession to supporters of gun rights: It would allow out-of-staters to bring high-capacity magazines into Vermont for shooting competitions.
During Thursday’s debate on the House floor, Rep. Patrick Brennan, R-Colchester, argued the provision banning guns from hospitals would not be effective.
“I wouldn’t carry in a hospital, and there are people who would, and those are the bad actors that we all worry about,” he said. “This bill — as we all know — won’t do a thing to prohibit that from happening.”
Rep. Mari Cordes, D/P-Lincoln, a registered nurse, spoke in favor of the bill. She recounted an instance in the University of Vermont Medical Center mother-baby unit during which she found a gun left unattended by a hospital visitor — a situation she said could have led to harm.
But Rep. Samantha Lefebvre, R-Orange, said she had been working at the hospital at that time and recalled the incident differently.
“The owner of that gun was very aware and was a very good gun owner,” she said.
Rep. Brian Smith, R-Derby, moved to refer the bill to the House Committee on Health Care, but that motion failed on a vote of 55 to 90.
S.30 faces a final vote in the House on Friday, after which the Senate would take up the latest version and concur, offer additional amendments or convene a conference committee with the House to work out the differences.
It’s unclear how Gov. Phil Scott would react if the bill reached his desk. Scott signed Vermont’s first major gun control law in 2018 but has since opposed additional efforts to strengthen the state’s gun laws. In 2019, he vetoed legislation mandating a 24-hour waiting period for handgun purchases.
Asked Thursday whether the governor would sign or veto the bill, Scott spokesperson Jason Maulucci provided an ambiguous answer.
“The Governor has said he’s not opposed to considering proposals that would close the ‘Charleston loophole,’” Maulucci said in a written response. But, he added, since signing the 2018 law, Scott has said he “believes new restrictions aren’t necessary and that we should instead focus on improving underlying causes of violence.”
Thursday’s vote margin of 97-49 suggests that the House is tantalizingly close to having the two-thirds support necessary to override a veto from Scott should he ultimately oppose the bill.
