State Rep. Will Ainsworth of Guntersville said he would introduce a bill today to allow trained, certified teachers to carry weapons on school campuses, a move that he had announced last week after 17 people were killed at a high school in Parkland, Fla.

Ainsworth held a news conference this morning at Guntersville Elementary School, where his three children attend, and was joined by law enforcement, school officials and other lawmakers.

Ainsworth, a Republican who is running for lieutenant governor, called his bill a commonsense approach to protecting children.

Teachers and administrators who carried guns would have to receive 40 hours of training through the Alabama Peace Officers Standards and Training Commission and a mental health evaluation. The state would pay the cost of training but not the cost of the guns.

Parents, students and the public would not be told which teachers are certified to carry weapons, but law enforcement would know, Ainsworth said.

Marshall County Sheriff Scott Walls and DeKalb County Chief Deputy Michael Edmondson spoke in support of Ainsworth's bill. Walls said school resource officers, who are police officers assigned to duties at schools, are important but do not provide enough protection.

"Law enforcement certainly supports this bill and other bills that will help us protect our children," Walls said.

Marshall County Schools Superintendent Cindy Wigley, DeKalb County Schools Superintendent Jason Barnett and second-grade teacher Sally Campbell spoke about the need for more protection for students. Wigley noted that a school shooting can be over in three minutes, which can be too fast for a law enforcement agency to respond.

Three other Republican lawmakers -- Sen. Clay Scofield and Rep. Kerry Rich of Guntersville and Rep. Nathaniel Ledbetter of Rainsville, the House majority leader -- said they would back Ainsworth's legislation.

Rich said he proposed a similar bill about five years ago but said the state was not ready at that time. Rich said the state also needs to expand and improve mental health services, calling the level of available mental health care "pathetic."

During a press conference last week, House Speaker Mac McCutcheon called on legislators to be creative in looking for ways to help make schools in their districts be more safe. McCutcheon said it was too early to say whether he would support Ainsworth's bill.

An Alabama task force that issued a report on school safety in December 2016 did not recommend arming teachers.

Sen. Doug Jones told a Mobile TV station that arming teachers is "the dumbest idea I've ever heard."