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PHOENIX -- Gov. Doug Ducey refused Tuesday to force Arizona to join with other states to restrict what kind of gun laws each can adopt.

But he did not hesitate to sign a new law that will let individuals sue local governments that enact their own firearms laws. While that measure applies statewide, it is aimed largely at Tucson which has three specific ordinances that gun-rights advocates find offensive.

And the governor also penned his approval to another law creating an exception to prohibitions of weapons on the campuses of public universities and colleges. It says people do not have to disarm themselves when they walk or drive on public streets and sidewalks going through a campus.

In a veto message on HB 2524, Ducey said he is a strong supporter of the Second Amendment right to bear arms. But he said what was in the proposal by Rep. Bob Thorpe, R-Flagstaff, essentially would surrender Arizona's right to decide what laws it does and does not want about things like requiring background checks when a weapon is purchased.

"I believe it's important that Arizona continue to chart its own course and retain its sovereignty,'' he wrote in a veto message.