Officials voice 'serious concern' over gun law

Aug. 31—PLATTSBURGH — Local politicians and officials are asking the governor's office for further clarification about the new concealed carry legislation that goes into effect tomorrow.

The legislation, (A41001/S51001), passed in early July, aims to strengthen New York's gun laws and increase restrictions on concealed carry weapons in sensitive areas of the state, which include public parks.

The inclusion of public parks in the legislation immediately raised questions from politicians and residents about what that will mean for those in the Adirondack Park — living or visiting — who currently legally conceal carry and if, come Sept. 1, will it be illegal for them to continue doing so? and will they be in danger of being charged with a Class E Felony for owning a concealed weapon?

'AREAS OF SERIOUS CONCERN'

Just one day away from the legislation going into effect, State Assemblyman D. Billy Jones (D-Chateaugay Lake), State Assemblyman Matt Simpson (R-Horicon) and officials from the Adirondack Park Local Government Review Board and the Adirondack Association of Towns and Villages (AATV) say those questions, along with many others, are still unclear.

"We have a couple of different areas of serious concern," Jones said during a press conference at the Peru Boat Launch Tuesday.

"And one is how this affects public parks and how the definition of public parks is going to apply to the Adirondack Park. and I know...most of the people here are very frustrated on a response or non response we're getting on that."

Jones also noted that A41001/S51001 will require New Yorkers, looking to complete the concealed carry permitting process, to meet new training requirements.

"There are training requirements here that we, quite frankly, don't know if we have the capacity to fulfill those training requirements for our pistol permit carrying citizens. They have to get requalified and trained. It used to be five years, the training was never put in, now it's three years," he said.

"Our question is, and we need to know, who is qualified to train these people? How are they going to get the training? I know in my little home county of Franklin County...we have 7,000 people who are pistol permit carrying law-abiding citizens.

"What is the training capacity in Franklin County? It's not that great, and that's no fault of anybody, but how are we going to get these people qualified with that training?"

'COULDN'T TELL YOU'

Simpson, who has had a concealed carry permit for over 30 years, said he is among those concerned about the legality of concealed carrying.

"I'm a sportsman and this time of year, we're getting close to September, this is a time when people who are hunters and fall fisherman are getting back into the woods when it cools down and one of the things that they have been able to enjoy is exercising their right with a properly permitted concealed carry," Simpson said.

"Now, a lot of places we go are miles and miles back in the woods, one of my favorite trout ponds is seven miles. and right now, I couldn't tell you whether I'm legally able to have my handgun with me as I have for the last 30 years."

Another area of concern in the new gun legislation, raised by Simpson, involves conceal carry in local businesses and how that looks to be affected moving forward.

"...In New York state, a business has to declare whether firearms are OK or not, rather than somebody (a business) saying firearms are prohibited. To me, that really should be the opposite, otherwise you have to assume that every place that you go, without a sign, is off limits to firearms," he said.

"We really need clarification and we need it immediately. There's too many people at risk here who have been law-abiding citizens following the law and now... they don't know where they stand."

NO TIME FOR INPUT

Shawn Gilliland, vice president of AATV, said the newly-enacted gun legislation shouldn't have been written without receiving feedback from those who will be directly affected.

"The legislature didn't even give it time for public comment. So nobody, no law-abiding citizen who has a concealed carry permit, or any gun owner in the State of New York, had the opportunity to provide input to it," Gilliland said.

"The state has had...the redistricting commission that went around and talked throughout the state to its citizens about redistricting...and then you have another example (with) the farm worker overtime law, they've been going throughout the state talking to agricultural interests about it. But they didn't give this particular law that courtesy to allow the people of New York to speak.

"Well now we are here demanding that we get to speak."

IMPACTED 'EVERYDAY'

There are just two counties that wholly reside in the Adirondack Park Blue Line: Essex and Hamilton Counties.

Chairman of the Hamilton County Board of Supervisors, Brian Wells, was at the press conference to speak on behalf of Hamilton County and how the residents will be affected when this bill goes into law.

"Hamilton County is in the (Adirondack) park, from our school's geographic size and our sparse population, if signed into law, we will be impacted everyday," Wells said.

"The ability to have basic constitutional rights will be gone. From our hunting heritage to our ability to protect our loved ones...I would ask the governor to not sign this flawed legislation, go back to the drawing board and enact legislation that would be effective in stopping gun violence and not persecute law-abiding citizens."

Executive director of the Adirondack Park Local Government Review Board, Jerry Delaney, pointed out that this gun legislation isn't a bi-partisan issue but a cultural issue.

"I'd like to point out (that) behind me are both democrats and republicans," Delaney said.

"This is not a political issue, this is a cultural issue inside the Adirondacks. The Adirondack people have been born into a culture of hunting and fishing and enjoying the outdoors and this law, unfortunately, strikes right to that culture.

"We have citizens who, honestly, are worried whether or not they are going to commit a felony as they are traveling down through the road."

'HOW DO YOU DEAL WITH THAT?'

Delaney raised several questions he still has regarding future travel in the Adirondack Park and issues with privately-owned lands.

"When you're driving down a state road with forest preserves on both sides of it, you are in a forest preserve... that becomes a park. How do we deal with that issue? How do we deal with the issue of private land that has conservation easements on it...? Is that a park or is that private lands?

"Can the private landowner now continue to have his leases there that will allow for the carrying of concealed weapons during hunting season? Or is, now, the state taking away more economic benefit for those landowners, because it's managed partially by the state? Does that mean it's part of the park?

"There are so many questions for this unique area of this region that did not get answered and quite truthfully, unfortunately, once again, the state does not want to answer those questions. They want to push down legislation on culturally different people and expect us to agree with it and abide by it. But, the state has a responsibility to tell us what the rules are, instead of letting us find out by error."

Email: cnewton@pressrepublican.com

Twitter: CarlySNewton