13-R397
2013 -- S 0862 SUBSTITUTE B
Enacted 07/11/13
J O I N T R E S
O L U T I O N
CREATING A
BEHAVIORAL HEALTH AND FIREARMS SAFETY TASK FORCE TO REVIEW, AND MAKE
RECOMMENDATIONS FOR, STATUTES RELATING TO FIREARMS AND BEHAVIORAL HEALTH ISSUES
Introduced By: Senators Cool Rumsey, Goldin, Walaska, Archambault, and Lombardi
Date Introduced: April 11, 2013
WHEREAS, Recent and
well-publicized events, including the tragic shootings at
society deal with firearm violence and public safety; and
WHEREAS, The Rhode
Island General Assembly seeks to ensure that the laws of our
state strike an appropriate balance between preserving the
individual freedoms and liberties of
responsible firearm ownership, on the one hand, and on the other
hand, acknowledging that
matters of public safety are recognized; and
WHEREAS, Many of the current laws enacted in our state relating to
firearms have not
been reviewed for decades, and though various governmental
stakeholders have come together
during the 2013 legislative session to propose ways to
strengthen these laws, the General
Assembly believes that it is appropriate to conduct a
comprehensive review of these laws; and
WHEREAS, It is of particular concern how the
with the intersection of behavioral health and firearms
safety; and
WHEREAS, It is in the best interest of the citizens of
force composed of representatives from the legislative,
executive, and judicial branches of
government, members of the behavioral health community, and representatives
from firearm
associations; now, therefore be it
RESOLVED,
That the Behavioral Health And Firearms Safety Task
Force (hereinafter
referred to as the "Task Force”) be and the same is
hereby created consisting of twenty (20)
members: three (3) of whom shall be members of the House of
Representatives, to be appointed
by the Speaker of the House, not more than two (2) of
whom shall be from the same political
party; three (3) of whom shall be members of the Senate, to
be appointed by the President of the
Senate, not more than two
(2) of whom shall be from the same political party; two (2) of whom
shall be members to be selected by the Governor; one of
whom shall be the Attorney General, or
designee; one of whom shall be the State Court Administrator,
of designee; one of whom shall be
the Director of the Department of Public Safety, or
designee; one of whom shall be the Director
of the Department of Environmental Management, or
designee; one of whom shall be the
Director of the Department
of Behavioral Healthcare, Developmental Disabilities and Hospitals,
or designee; one of whom shall be the President of the
Police Chiefs' Association, or designee;
one of whom shall be the Mental Health Advocate, or
designee; one of whom shall be a public
member representing mental health service providers, to be
appointed by the President of the
Senate; one of whom shall
be a public member representing substance abuse service providers, to
be appointed by the Speaker of House; and three (3) of
whom shall be public members of the
Federated Rhode Island
Sportsmen’s Club, Inc., one of whom shall be appointed by the Speaker
of the House, one of whom shall be appointed by the
President of the Senate, and one of whom
shall be appointed by the Governor.
The
purpose of said Task Force shall be to conduct a review of current law and make
recommendations on legislation to improve public safety by developing
a more comprehensive
approach addressing the nexus between behavioral health and
firearms safety and shall include
performing the following functions with respect to the National
Instant Criminal Background
Check System
("NICS"):
(1)
Conduct a review of different states' approaches for compliance with the NICS
Index
(which
includes information contributed by federal and state agencies identifying
persons
prohibited from possessing firearms because of mental health or
substance abuse history) to
ensure that the state conforms to best practices nationally;
(2)
Propose legislation and recommendations to support the state's full
participation in the
NICS Index; and
(3)
Propose legislation and recommendations concerning the form and composition of
the
relief from disabilities board based on a review of federal
and state laws, rules, and regulations;
and be it further
RESOLVED,
That the Task Force shall review chapter 11-47 of the
General Laws entitled
"Weapons" and chapter 40.1-5 of the Rhode Island General Laws
entitled
"Mental Health
Law" and make recommendations to revise such chapters consistent with this
Joint Resolution, which
recommendations shall include, but not be limited to, ensuring (1) The
privacy of information identifying persons with disqualifying
behavioral health adjudications or
commitments; and (2) That the definitions used in such chapters
related to mental health and
substance abuse (or in contemporaneous legislation proposed by
the Task Force) are consistent
before transmitting such recommendations to the Governor,
the Speaker of the House, and the
President
of the Senate.
In
lieu of any appointment of a member of the legislature to a permanent advisory
commission, a legislative study commission, or any commission created
by a General Assembly
resolution, the appointing authority may appoint a member of the
general public to serve in lieu
of a legislator, provided that the majority leader or
the minority leader of the political party which
is entitled to the appointment consents to the member of
the general public.
Forthwith
upon passage of this resolution, a Representative appointed from the political
party of the Speaker of House and a Senator appointed from
the political party of the President of
the Senate shall call the first meeting of the Task
Force, and the members of the Task Force shall,
at their first meeting, elect a Chairperson, a
Secretary, and any other officers they may find
necessary.
The
Task Force shall assemble no less than two (2) times per month, or more often
at the
call of the Chairperson or upon petition of a majority of
its members, upon written notice of each
meeting stating the place, day, and time of the meeting along
with the purpose and/or agenda of
the meeting. The written notice shall be sent to all
members of the Task Force not less than seven
(7), nor more than ten (10)
days prior to the meeting.
A
quorum of the Task Force shall consist of a majority of its current membership
and the
membership shall receive no compensation for their services.
Vacancies
in said Task Force shall be filled in like manner as the original appointment.
All
departments and agencies of the state shall furnish such advice and
information,
documentary and otherwise, to said Task Force and its agents as
is deemed necessary or desirable
by the Task Force to facilitate the purposes of this
resolution.
The
Joint Committee on Legislative Services is hereby authorized and directed to
provide
suitable quarters for said Task Force; and be it further
RESOLVED,
That the Task Force shall report its findings and
recommendations to the
Governor, the Speaker of
the House, and the President of the Senate no later than January 31,
2014, and said Task Force
shall expire on June 30, 2014.
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LC02368/SUB B
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