Snyder vetoes gun bill over protection order provision

LANSING, Mich. (AP) - Republican Gov. Rick Snyder vetoed a rewrite of a Michigan gun law Thursday, objecting to a provision that would have let some people who have personal protection orders taken out against them still obtain concealed pistol licenses.

Snyder had faced mounting pressure to rebuff the bills from female leaders as well as gun control advocates and groups that work against domestic violence. The governor wrote to lawmakers that the measures could have increased the risks of violence and intimidation toward victims of domestic abuse. He said people who seek protection orders may not know to ask a judge for gun restrictions.

The governor later told reporters that while he agreed with many other parts of the legislation, the provision involving protection orders may have been an "unintended consequence" overlooked in the waning hours of the Republican-controlled Legislature's recent lame-duck session.

"I didn't feel comfortable signing these bills with the possibility that people could perceive or there could be a situation where someone who has a protection order on them could go get a concealed weapon," Snyder said.

The legislation would have abolished county concealed weapon licensing boards and transferred their duties to county clerks or law enforcers, decreased license and renewal fees, and made other changes that Snyder supports.

The bills' disappointed sponsor, Republican Sen. Mike Green of Mayville, said the provision in question would have aligned with another state law that requires courts to notify concealed weapon licensing boards of the existence of a personal protection order only if the order prohibits the subject from buying or having a gun.

"We believe the reason he vetoed it was not in the bill but in the law we were trying to fix," he said late Thursday, contending that Snyder's administration seemed comfortable with the measures when they won final legislative approval.

Despite wondering if Snyder was just looking for an "excuse" to veto the legislation, he said he would take the governor "at his word" and work to send him revised bills in the new two-year session.

People applying for protection orders have the discretion on whether to ask for a firearms restriction, Green said. Those convicted of misdemeanor domestic violence cannot get a concealed weapon permit for eight years under current law, and the legislation would have extended the prohibition to those charged with domestic violence until their case is adjudicated, according to his office.

Green ensured House approval of the bill as part of last-minute deal-making over a $1.3 billion transportation funding package in December. He was the crucial 26th vote in the Senate to put a proposed one percentage point sales tax hike on the May ballot.

The gun measure was approved along party lines in the Senate and also picked up support from about half of Democrats in the House.

Snyder's veto was applauded by Gabrielle Giffords, the former Arizona congresswoman who founded the gun control group Americans for Responsible Solutions after she was shot at a constituent event in 2011, and by Democratic U.S. Rep. Debbie Dingell of Dearborn, who in recent days shared the "raw terror" she felt as a child in a domestic abuse situation.

"Every child deserves to feel safe and every woman deserves to be able to live and work in a community without fear that she may be stalked or hurt," Dingell said in a statement.

The National Rifle Association said the veto was an "extremely disappointing move ... based on fallacies and a basic misunderstanding of the law." It said opponents never raised concerns about the provision until after it had passed the Legislature, not allowing supporters to "set the record straight."

This is the second time Green's legislation to eliminate county gun boards has been vetoed by Snyder. Two years ago, the governor vetoed the bill because it would have allowed concealed weapons in churches, schools and daycare centers - days after a mass shooting at a Connecticut elementary school.

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Online:

Veto letter: http://1.usa.gov/1CcPu9J

Senate Bills 789-90: http://1.usa.gov/1yp1zs9

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Email David Eggert at deggert@ap.org and follow him at http://twitter.com/DavidEggert00