Gun rights advocates say the Governor and legislature need to step in to amend the state Department of Justice’s concealed carry rules. Jeff Nass, President of NRA charter group WI-FORCE, says Attorney General JB Van Hollen has overstepped his bounds by mandating four-hour training with the firearms.
Although lawmakers did not specify a specific number of hours required for a concealed carry permit, Nass says the law’s language does allow for certain training courses which fall short of that four-hour mandate such as the hunter safety course.
“The whole course takes longer than that but that’s climbing over fences and all the other things they do in hunter education.”
He says contrast that with the NRA’s Firststeps Basic Course – which includes more pistol safety and familiarity training than the hunter’s course – only runs minimum three-and-a-half hours.
AUDIO: Nass on their opposition to DOJ emergency rules. (1:42)
In a letter to the NRA, Van Hollen says he’s only interpreting the law as narrowly as possible to carry out what the legislature intended.