By Abrahm Hurt
TheStatehouseFile.com

INDIANAPOLIS — Legislation to allow guns in churches appears to be faltering in the Indiana House.

Senate Bill 33 would permit a licensed gun owner to carry a firearm onto church property that has a school. For three days it has been on the House calendar and for three days in a row, Rep. Mike Speedy, R-Indianapolis, has declined to bring it up for discussion and amendments.

Current law bars guns on school property but SB 33 aims to change that, allowing the gun owner to carry the weapon when attending worship, working or volunteering at the church.

Speedy said he has not made a decision on whether he will call the bill for discussion and amendments.

“Still trying to figure out the amendments and understand all their implications and just trying to understand them,” he said.

Currently, 19 amendments have been filed to change the bill, ranging from banning bump stocks on assault rifles to stripping and replacing the language of the bill.

Rep. Jim Lucas, R-Seymour, proposed an amendment that would bar the state from regulating firearms, ammunition and their accessories at all. He has long held the position that Second Amendment guns rights are absolute.

Rep. Ben Smaltz, R-Auburn, wants to strip the language of the current bill and replace it with wording similar in content to House Bill 1424, which would drop licensing fees for lifetime gun permits. HB 1424 has passed the Senate and is on the Appropriations Committee.

House Speaker Brian Bosma, R-Indianapolis, said he did not know if the bill was in trouble, but added, “There’s some concern about the appropriateness and the timing right now.”

Just two weeks ago, a gunman entered a Florida high school and opened fire, killing 17 people and injuring dozens more. The events have sparked debate at both the state and federal level about the availability of guns and whether they should be more tightly regulated.

Speedy said it was an appropriate time to discuss gun legislation.

“I think it’s an appropriate time to discuss freedom of houses of worship to protect themselves even if they have a school,” Speedy said.

FOOTNOTE: Abrahm Hurt is a reporter for TheStatehouseFile.com, a news website powered by Franklin College journalism students.