Iowa Gun Rights Movement Suffers Major Blow

Secretary of State’s failure appears to have undone Constitutional Amendment

Members of the Iowa Firearms Coalition (IFC) have just received word of what appears to a massive blow to their efforts to add the Right to Keep and Bear Arms to the State of Iowa’s Constitution.

The setback comes from an unlikely source, Iowa’s Secretary of State Paul Pate. In 2018, the Iowa Legislature approved House Joint Resolution 2009. The bill was phase one of the process to amend the Iowa Constitution. Amending the constitution is a long and prescriptive process. Among the many requirements is a mandate for public notification that must be made three months prior to the election of a new general assembly. This responsibility falls to the Secretary of State’s office. Pate’s office failed make the constitutionally mandated public notice available prior to the November 2018 elections.

“This news came as a complete shock to us. Our volunteers have worked their butts off for a very long time to put all the pieces in place for this movement. This failure has major ramifications for us,as his inaction amounted to an inadvertent veto. Its impact will be felt for years.” Said Kurt Liske, President of the Iowa Firearms Coalition.

The Iowa Firearms Coalition is reviewing options for a retroactive fix in hopes of fulfilling the constitutional requirement though many constitutional scholars believe there is no way to lawfully work backward in this scenario.

“We have members throughout the state who have donated their time and money specifically to this project. It appears that all of their time and money has just been undone. These hardworking Iowans deserve a public apology.” Said Liske.

Iowa’s Constitution is considered to be one of the most difficult in the country to amend. Proposed changes must pass the legislature. The changes must then be confirmed by the legislature again after a statewide election has occurred. Once those requirements are met, the proposed change to the constitution is then put to Iowa voters in the form of a ballot initiative.

Were it not for the Secretary of State’s apparent failure to notify the public, the Right to Keep and Bear Arms amendment appeared to on track for a 2020 statewide vote of the people. Now the movement goes back to square one and the soonest this could make its way to a statewide ballot is 2022. Liske says despite this setback, the Iowa Firearms Coalition and its members will continue to push for a change to the Iowa Constitution in 2019 and beyond.

Contact:
Iowa Firearms Coalition info@iowafc.org
(515) 423-0391