- The House of Representatives approved gun legislation a week after the National Rifle Association and state sheriffs

House members approved the bill on a 74-27 vote after about three hours of debate.

The bill, SB286, would restrict sheriffs' discretion in issuing concealed carry permits for pistols, allow people, under certain conditions, to keep guns in their vehicles in workplace parking lots, allow people to carry an unloaded gun in their car without a concealed carry permit and attempt to clarify Alabama's status as an "open carry" state.

Rep. Ed Henry, R-Hartselle, said the bill is necessary to ensure law-abiding citizens can protect themselves.

"Alabama is a very conservative state. We believe in the citizens' right to keep and bear arms. I believe the outcome in the House today proved that," Henry said.

But opposed lawmakers said the bill would make the state a more dangerous place.

“We are setting us up for a lot of chaos and going back to the wild, wild West," Rep. Mary Moore, D-Birmingham, said.

Read the House-passed bill.pdf

Henry said the bill would clean up conflicting law and clarify that Alabama is an open carry state. He said people have been, he thought, wrongly arrested for disorderly conduct for openly carrying holstered pistols in public.

"It's a right to carry your gun. It's a privilege to conceal it," Henry said.

Rep. Pebblin Warren, who is married to Macon County Sheriff David Warren, said she regularly carries a gun with a concealed carry permit and has many in her home.

But Warren said she was worried what will happen when people start trying to openly carry weapons into bars and "hole-in-the-wall" establishments.

"I wore this black (suit) today because I said today is a day of mourning for me because I know after this bill is passed we are going to have to put on more black suits and go to more funerals," Warren, D-Tuskegee, said.

Warren said the bill, if approved, will make her worry more for the safety of her sheriff husband and his deputies.

Henry said Alabama is already open carry and a private property owner could still restrict people from openly carrying guns into their business with a notice on the door or asking them to leave.

During the early debate, lawmakers bantered over if loosening restrictions on guns would make people more or less safe.

"Guns don't kill people... People kill people," Henry said.

"With guns," Rep. Thomas Jackson, D-Thomasville, responded.

The bill, if signed into law, would:

- State that the mere carrying of a visible, holstered pistol in public is not a crime of disorderly conduct.

- Change the law regarding carrying a pistol in a vehicle. A concealed carry permit would still be required to carry a loaded pistol in the car. A permit would not be required if the pistol is unloaded and locked in a compartment that is attached to the car and out of reach of the driver and passenger.

- Allow concealed carry permits to last for five years instead of just one. The fee would be higher for multiple year permits.

- Direct that sheriffs "shall" issue a concealed carry permit unless the sheriff has a reasonable belief the person would be a danger because of past behavior. The sheriff, unless it would interfere with a current investigation, would have to give the person a written explanation of the reason. There would be an appeals process for denials.

- Say that business owners are justified in the use of deadly force if someone is about to use physical force against the owner or employee while committing a robbery or other violent crime.

-- Block employers from prohibiting employees from bringing guns into workplace parking lots provided the firearm is out of sight and the car is locked. A concealed carry permit would be required for pistols. A shotgun or hunting rifle, could only be carried during hunting season, and would require a valid hunting license. Employees would have to meet other requirements.

The Business Council of Alabama remains opposed to the bill because of the workplace parking lot provision.

The bill gives businesses legal immunity for any shootings that might occur, but not the op-out provision for businesses that BCA had sought.

BCA President and CEO Billy Canary said he appreciated the "significant" efforts of the House of Representatives, but "this legislation falls short of our support.”

“The BCA strongly maintains that all amendments to the Constitution of the United States are applied equally, with none having precedence over another. The Fifth Amendment rights of property owners are equally as important as the Second Amendment right to bear arms," Canary said.

Rep. Phil Williams, R-Rainbow City, told Henry that while he supported gun rights, he couldn’t support the bill because it would impact the rights of business owners.

Williams said he thought the states' auto manufacturers would be opposed.

Henry acknowledged that was a "sticky" issue and pitted two conservative principles against each other -- the right of the gun owner versus the property rights of the business owner.

The bill before the House is significantly different from a Senate-passed bill that was opposed by law enforcement.

The bill will have to return to the Alabama Senate. The Senate could accept the changes or send it to a conference committee.

Senate sponsor Sen. Scott Beason, R-Gardendale, said the House bill was not as strong as he would like.

"It’s still a good piece of legislation. I’ve got to examine all the details and see what they changed down there completely. We’re light years ahead of where we were," Beason said.

Beason said he would like people to be able to carry pistols in their vehicles without a permit. The new bill did away with a free lifetime vehicle permit approved by the Senate.

“Republicans have proven once again that our constitutional right to bear arms is sacrosanct and will be prioritized and protected in the great state of Alabama," Speaker of the House Mike Hubbard, R-Auburn, said in a prepared statement after the vote.

Staff writer Mike Cason contributed to this report.