Richard Nascak
Ft. Myers Gun Rights Examiner

HB 45 filed in Florida, will give teeth to 23-year old preemption statute.

December 7th, 2010 3:13 pm ET.

In 1987, the Florida legislature took action to eliminate the patchwork of conflicting firearms local ordinances that plagued firearms owners at that time. At last, they would enjoy a single blanket set of rules that would apply statewide. Although it was a noble concept, it failed miserably in practice. Twenty-three years later, a full two-thirds of Florida counties and countless municipalities, cities, and towns still have ordinances relating to the regulation of firearms. How could this have happened? The links provide insight into the problem.

http://www.examiner.com/gun-rights-i...sed-and-abused

http://www.examiner.com/gun-rights-i...-firearms-laws

Simply put, a local jurisdiction could publish an ordinance or regulation in conflict with state preemption and the state attorney was obligated to regard it as lawful unless it was successfully challenged in court. However, few persons could muster the funds to mount a legal challenge against a virutally boundless taxpayer-funded local authority. There was no "loser pays" provision to the statute, so even if one was successful in court, one still had to foot the bill.

HB 45 - http://www.myfloridahouse.gov/Sectio...5&Session=2011

To read the rest of the story click the link below.

http://www.examiner.com/gun-rights-i...mption-statute

Steve